Finding Home
by CharmingsDaughter
Summary: AU: When a young woman who recently aged out of the foster care system finds herself in the witness protection program, she ends up having to pose as the daughter of Killian and Emma Jones in order to be protected from her would be assailant. Family Fluff and Teen angst. This is set in modern day. I only own Elizabeth/Zoe but do not own Once Upon a Time or any of their characters.
1. Chapter 1

**This came from reading another amazing fan fiction about Emma going into the witness protection. I was dumb and didn't favorite/follow it so if anyone knows what one I'm talking about can you please comment what it was?**

 **Within a few days I already had 9 chapters. I debated wither or not to post it but then decided that maybe someone out there would like it. For those of you following my one shots, this is not going to take away from that in any way. I actually wrote this before I wrote any of those one shots :)**

 **Please review and let me know what you think. As I said, I do already have the first 9 chapters written but if you want to see something specific please let me know!**

 **Hope you all enjoy!**

 **Chapter 1**

She sat in the hard wooden chair looking aimlessly around the police station as the officers moved about like ants, all of them in a hurry, all of them with somewhere to be. How did she get here? How did a causal night out turn into this?

Elizabeth had been on her way out to her car when she heard a loud cry come from behind the building. Everything in her now wishes she had left well enough alone and simply called 911. She made her way around the back to see a larger man with his hands around the next of what looked like one of the waitresses from the restaurant. She didn't know what to do so she simply shouted "HEY!" causing the man to be startled and drop the woman whom he was trying to kill. Elizabeth got a good look at his face, a face that she wouldn't soon forget. It was like time stood still. He was an older man, probably in his mid 40's and stood at about 5 foot 7 inches and weighed about 250lbs of mostly muscle. As soon as Elizabeth's body finally reacted she ran back to her car and drove off as fast as she could while calling 911.

The police officer, Sargent David Nolan was now telling her that, thanks to her quick thinking, they were able to apprehend a suspect and needed her to identify him. She was easily able to do so. What worried her was the look on Sargent Nolan's face when she identified the man. She hadn't really understood why the 911 operator had asked her to return to the scene or why the officers had her escorted back to the station, that was until she was brought into Sargent Nolan's office.

"Elizabeth I want to thank you again for all your help. Because of you we were able to apprehend the man who hurt that poor woman"

"How is she?"

"She is going to have a very sore throat for a while but doctors say she is going to recover just fine. But Elizabeth, I need to share something with you" With that comment, Sargent Nolan moved around to the front of his desk to sit next to Elizabeth. "The man that you identified through the glass, he is the head of the local mob here in Boston. Elizabeth…he is extremely dangerous."

Elizabeth put her head in her hands for a moment. Of course, the one time she steps up and becomes a hero, she incriminates the head of the mob. This only heightened her belief that she should have just called 911 and stayed out of the whole situation from the start. But then again, that girl may not be alive had she not got involved. This was just all too much to process, it was close to 4am and all she wanted to do was go home and crawl into bed and act like all of this never happened.

"Elizabeth, are you okay?" Sargent Nolan asked placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. Elizabeth looked up at him with her blood shot eyes. There was something about this girl that made him feel protective of her. He really wanted to help her in any way that he could.

"yea, this is just all a bit…well overwhelming. Am I able to go home now?"

"Well that's part of the reason I brought you in here…Elizabeth, I hate to tell you this but…" He ran a hand down his face, he really didn't want to have to do this, but he knew it was the only way he could keep this poor girl safe. "We are taking you into protective custody and you are going to be put into the witness protection program. Because you are the only one who saw what happened we need you to testify. The issues here is that, because of who the man is, they are going to try and come after you. You said he got a good look at you right?"

Elizabeth let out a huge breath she hadn't even realized she had been holding "Yea…he did"

"Well he isn't going to waste any time putting your description out to his people. For now, we're going to get you to a safe location and then we'll go over specifics okay?" Elizabeth simply nodded back. She was in total and complete shock.

Just then there was a knock at the door and a small woman with black hair and a pixy hair cut came in. "Hi, you must be Elizabeth. I'm Officer Mary Margret Nolan, Sargent Nolan is my husband. I'm going to be escorting you to a safe location and I'm going to help you transition into your new place okay?" Again, Elizabeth simply nodded in response, she was at a total loss for words.

"I'm going to talk to Sargent Nolan for just a moment, we'll be right back in okay?" Mary Margret asked hoping to at least get a one word response but was instead met once again with a nod of her head. Mary Margret then led David out into the hall and closed his office door behind them.

"That poor girl, is she going to be okay?"

"I don't know…I mean…you go from a night out to being told you identified the head of the mob as an attempted murderer and are now going to be taken into protective custody. I feel like over all she's actually handling it pretty well"

"How old is she? She doesn't look like she can be more than 15! I mean, she has a drivers license so I guess she could be 16"

"She actually just turned 18. She was in the foster system since age 5 when her parents rights were terminated over drug charges and is now officially aged out. It doesn't seem like she has any connections as far as what you would consider family. She has been in a group home just outside the city since she was 14" David said flipping through the unusually large file he had been able to pull up on her

"That poor girl, she finally gets her freedom and now we have to take it away again. We can't just send her off on her own or with some inexperienced agent"

"I have an idea of where we could send her" David said placing his arm around his wife and giving her a knowing look

"I think that's perfect" Snow responded with a childish grin


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

 **I hope you guys liked the first chapter. Here is the next. I'll try and post chapter 3 in a few days. Also, check out my one shot story** ** _Once Upon a One Shot_** **and let me know what you think. I will be tying to update that before the end of the week as I'm going on vacation next week!**

 **Let me know what you think!**

Mary Margret, along with officer Bishop escorted Emma to a local hotel making sure that they left via the back door of the station and entered through the side door of the hotel as to do their best to avoid anyone realizing that Elizabeth was on the move.

Once they got up to the room Mary Margret asked officer Bishop to stand watch outside while she had a moment with Elizabeth. She guided the young woman inside and had her sit on one of the queen beds while Mary sat across from her on the other

"Officer Nolan…"

"Please, call me Mary"

"Okay…Mary…what did your husband mean when he said that I was being taken into custody?"

"Well, that's part of why I brought you here. I figured, not only is it quieter, but it's also safe than the station because no one knows you're here."

"So I just have to stay here at this hotel then till I testify?"

"Not exactly" Mary took a deep breath. She hated having to be the one to have to tell this poor girl that she was going to, once again, have her freedom taken from her. "Because the man you identified will most likely send his people after you, we have to take some extreme precautions to make sure that they don't hurt you. Does that make sense?"

"So far…" Elizabeth gave the woman a skeptical look, she could tell that the woman was beating around the bush.

"So in order to do that we take you into what we call protective custody where, you're not in trouble, but you are going to be kept in a safe place under police protection"

"So I'm basically a prisoner who hasn't done anything wrong who, instead of being kept in a cell I get a hotel room, and I have a guaranteed release date after the trial?"

"I guess if you want to look at it that way. But you are in no way a prisoner, you are able to go about and live your life, just with a few more restrictions than you would normally have"

"He also mentioned the witness protection program? I thought that was something you only saw on TV"

"This is the hard part…Elizabeth…Even after you testify…the mob will still come after you, especially if your testimony puts their leader in prison which it's almost guaranteed to do…We are going to send you to live with a special agent who is trained to protect you…for the rest of your life"

"The rest…of….my life?...what?!" Elizabeth burst out standing up from the bed

"Please, calm down" Mary said standing up and placing her hands gently on Elizabeth's shoulders "I understand that this is a lot to take in"

"That's the understatement of the year!" Elizabeth yelled as the tears began to fall and wouldn't stop.

"Elizabeth I am so, _so_ sorry that this is happening to you. If there was any way that I could change this, I would. I promise you that the couple we are sending you to live with are the most amazing people and they are going to take very good care of you"

"You sound like every stupid social worker I ever met growing up! They always said that and then the mom would smack me for accidently waking her baby or the dad would get drunk and decided he wanted to go on a rampage and then I end up with a broken arm and bruised face. Forgive me if I don't trust people" Elizabeth spat

Seeing this poor girl broken down in front of her was breaking her heart. The system had failed this poor girl and now she just assumed it would again. "Elizabeth, please look at me" Mary said placing a gentle hand on her knee. Elizabeth looked at the woman across from her wanting desperately to trust her. To trust that she wasn't lying. To trust that this placement wouldn't be like the others. "Elizabeth, I promise you that these people that we are sending you to be with will never hurt you"

"How can you say that?"

"Because they are my daughter and son in law, Emma and Killian Jones. They live in Tallahassee Florida"

David arrived at the hotel in he and Mary's personal car about an hour later. He didn't want any reason to tip off those who may be looking for Elizabeth. He had called Emma and Killian once he was able to get to his car and they had readily agreed to take the girl in. Killian was the local police Sargent while Emma worked as a bail bonds person, it actually worked out very well and gave Emma a hand up in going after her targets. Being that Emma was contracted she was able to take time off whenever she felt like it and Killian said that he would be more than happy to help out as well. It really was a bonus for the family that they were all in law enforcement in some way.

He then texted Mary to get the room number and made his way up. Officer Bishop let David in and he found Mary sitting next to Elizabeth with her arm around her shoulder as the girl sobbed. It warmed David's heart to see her being a motherly figure to this poor girl. They had always wanted more children but never could conceive after Emma. Now with her and Killian living so far away, they didn't get a chance to be parental figures very often.

"Hey Elizabeth, I'm so sorry about all of this, I know it is really hard" David said coming in and sitting across from the women.

"Thank you Sargent Nolan"

"You can call me David"

"David…so…I heard that I'm going to live with your daughter?"

"I just got off the phone with her and her husband and they are very excited to have you come and live with them. They understand what has happened here and promised to try and make things as normal as possible okay?" Elizabeth nodded.

"So did you and Mary pick out your new name?"

Elizabeth was wiping her tears away when David said that, causing her to immediately freeze in place "What do you mean? Pick a name?"

David shot a panicked look at Mary. He hadn't meant to spring that news on the poor girl. He figured after an hour that Mary would have mentioned it. Mary was shooting him the same look but quickly recovered and pull the girl in close. "I was about to start talking about that when you arrived _honey_."

"What does David mean?" Elizabeth sobbed

"Hey, it's okay" Mary said helping calm the girl down. She knew her husband didn't mean any harm but she was ready to kill him in this moment. "Just breath. Take a minute." She soothed. After a couple of minutes Elizabeth caught her breath and sat up on her own looking between the couple.

"What David means is, because this man knows what you look like, it won't be long before he knows your name and your age. As part of the witness protection program we talked about, we have you change your name and your age so that way, it makes it even harder for them to fine you"

"So what? I'm going to now be 25 year old Mary Smith from Hoboken?"

Mary couldn't help the small laugh that escaped from her "No sweetie…well, I mean if you wanted! We could totally do that!" The sarcasm brought a small smile to Elizabeth's face which warmed the couples hearts. "What we were actually thinking was, because you look younger than you are, having you be a 14 year old and, if it was okay with you, having my daughter and son in law be your parents" Mary said the last part a bit hesitant. She knew Elizabeth had never had real parents before and she wasn't sure how she would react.

"Do you mean…?"

"On paper, and legally, Emma and Killian would be your parents and your last name would be jones"

"But I'm 18, you can't just redo someone's birth certificate" Elizabeth said a bit confused

"Well, you and I and Mary and Emma and Killian would know that. But, as part of this whole process, you're going to get all new paperwork. Elizabeth Bennett will no longer exist" David said cautiously. He didn't want to screw this conversation up any further than he already had.

Elizabeth took a minute. The idea of her never having existed was a bit too much for her to take in. She had gone from being alone in this world to possibly turning back the clock and getting to be a part of a real family. But then again, this all may be too good to be true. "So what would this mean?"

"This would mean that we would get you a new birth certificate and your back story would be that you are the newly adopted daughter of Emma and Killian. You get to choose your first name and you would take their last name. After that, you guys would work on being a family"

"Just until I get done testifying?"

"Well, like we talked about, because these people will try and come after you even after the trial, this would be forever. You would get to have a forever family" Mary said as upbeat as she could

"I've never had a real family before" Elizabeth said under her breath


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

 **Thank you everyone for the kind reviews! I have had a few people say that they think Elizabeth should be older. I have a reason for making her as young as she is. Originally I was going to have her be 16 but, for where I want to go and the story I want to tell, it's better that she's younger ;)**

 **Please keep your reviews coming and let me know what you want to see!**

* * *

David was feeling a lot of pressure to get Mary and officer Bishop on the road. He didn't want to keep Elizabeth in town for longer than he had to but he also wanted to be sensitive to this poor girl.

"Can I use the restroom?" Elizabeth asked after minute

"Of course" Mary said. Once they heard the door close and the fan come on David immediately moved into action. "Alright now that that is settled we need to get you guys out of here as soon as possible. We need her to give us her address and we can have one of the officers go over and gather her things…"

"David. Calm down. This girl has just had her whole life changed in a matter of a few hours"

"I know Mary, I want to be sensitive but I also don't want her here longer than she has to be. It won't be long before Stults' men figure out what happened and come looking for her"

"David do you realize that this girl may be our granddaughter?! This has now become personal!" That statement sent David for a loop. Granddaughter? He hadn't even put two and two together. That is one of the things he loved most about Mary was her ability to see the full picture. He also knew she was right, this wasn't just another case, this was family.

"You're right…You always are" he said placing a gentle kiss on the top of her head. That was when they heard the bathroom door open

Elizabeth got into the bathroom and turned on the fan before sliding her back down the door and falling into sobs. This was all too much. She was just out enjoying half off appetizers with a few of her new coworkers hours before and now she was being told she was going to have to give up everything she knows and start a new life in Florida, not just a new life like when she got moved from Minnesota to Boston but a new life and new identity. She wasn't sure if she was ready for that.

Mary and David seemed really nice but so did countless other case workers and foster parents when she had first met them and they all turned out to be jerks who lied and manipulated her. But there was something different about these two. Maybe it was the fact that they were sending her to live with their own daughter or maybe it was the way they looked at her with more than just a fake sympathetic look. She didn't want to do this, she had absolutely no reason to; but she also knew that if she was going to have to trust someone, she would choose to trust these people.

Elizabeth then got up off the floor, took one of the wash clothes and wiped her face before finally shutting off the fan and walking out into the small hotel room. As soon as the door opened David and Mary were standing and waiting for her. Elizabeth stared at them for a minute before talking in a very direct voice to keep herself from allowing the tears to take over again "I don't want to do this. But for some reason, I think you two can be trusted. So for that reason, and that reason only, I will go live with your daughter in Florida"

"Thank you Elizabeth" Mary said walking over and hugging the young girl

"We are going to take care of all the paperwork here on our end and will make sure that copies get sent to you in Florida." David said coming over and standing next to Mary.

"I have also decided what I want my name to be" Elizabeth said materafactly after Mary let go.

"That's great. What name did you choose?" Mary asked gently

"Zoe"

"Zoe Jones has a nice ring to is" David said thinking that having a granddaughter named Zoe sounded pretty good to him.

"I agree, Zoe is a beautiful name" Mary chimed in. "Now, Elizabeth would you mind writing down your home address? We will go collect your things and have them sent to your new address" Mary said holding out a pen and paper. Elizabeth quickly obliged and handed it back.

"There isn't much there. You don't get much that is yours in the foster care system. All the furniture came with the place so it's just my clothes and a few personal items"

"Well we will make sure that we get you anything else that you need. You're family now Elizabeth, we are going to make sure that you are always taken care of okay?" Mary said taking ahold of the young girls' shoulders.

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth looked at the pair who were sporting huge grins. Why would they call her family she was only going to… and then it dawned on her.

"Well, being that you're going to be our daughters' daughter, that makes you…" Mary said trailing off hoping she would understand

"Your granddaughter" Elizabeth said to herself more than out loud. She had just gone from no family to having both parents _AND_ grandparents. The couple looked at this young woman with so much love. They knew that fate had brought this girl into their lives and could finally understand why they had both felt such a need to protect her, she was always meant to be a part of their family.

"As much as I hate to have to move us along, Elizabeth we need to get you and Mary on the road. She and officer Bishop will escort you to Florida and make sure that you get settled in with Emma and Killian" David said hating to send his wife and now granddaughter away without him there

"Why don't you come with us David? Any of the officers at the station can push that paperwork through. We haven't been to Florida in months and I think it would be good to have our whole family together" Mary said looking over and smiling at Elizabeth.

"I guess you're right, and I should get to know my new granddaughter" He said placing an arm around Elizabeth "I guess you bent my arm, I'll go"

The three shared a mutual smile. Elizabeth knew that under normal circumstances, if someone had been this touchy feely with her she would have immediately bristled. She was feeling the same thing Mary was feeling, they were always meant to be a family, it just felt right.

"Good, go ahead a prep Bishop and we can be off" Mary said gently pushing David toward the door. This was going to be good.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

 **Hello Again! Here is the next chapter! I'm so excited for the new episode TOMORROW! If you haven't seen the sneak peeks I highly recommend you go watch them now!**

 **As for this chapter it may seem weird that Elizabeth/Zoe is just taking to this new situation but she is just in shock so she's not really sure how to act. Things will pic up in future chapters! :)**

 **Please review! I love knowing what you think!**

It wasn't long before the three were on the road. Within the first few minutes Elizabeth, or Zoe now, was in the backseat sound asleep shortly followed by David in the passenger's seat. Mary had agreed to take the first driving shift as she had been at home sleeping when David had called her in to help with Elizabeth so she was the only one who had gotten any sleep. She looked in the rearview mirror at the small sleeping girl in the backseat. She had thought she looked young when she saw her at the station but seeing her curled up, peaceful, she looked even younger.

Mary was glad that they could give this poor girl a small piece of her childhood back. By saying she was 14 it gave her a chance to step back in time and have a real family. Granted they would have to go over all the background story because they weren't going to make her go back to school, but she also was going to have to get used to not being able to drive again for another two years, but all of that was minor in comparison to all that she was going to gain, even if she didn't realize it just yet.

David and Mary continued to take shifts driving to Florida. Thankfully Elizabeth slept for much of the first half. All the events of the previous day had wiped her out and Mary and David were glad to see her take the time to sleep. They had already called Killian and Emma a few times to update them on the status of their trip and to update their ETA. The pair were excited to finally meet their new daughter, even if it was under these circumstances.

They finally arrived in Tallahassee the following evening around 5pm. They had called ahead and had Killian and Emma order Pizza so they could all eat dinner together. Along the way, once Elizabeth had woken up, they had had a few short conversations. Elizabeth wasn't ready to share a whole lot of her past so they focused more on her new future and shared funny stories about Emma and how she met Killian and what brought them to Florida. They hoped that, by breaking the ice now, it would leave a small crack for Emma and Killian to start building a foundation.

They pulled in the drive way and saw Emma and Killian waiting by the door to greet them. Mary helped get Elizabeth out of the car while David greeted Emma and Killian and tried to give them a very brief run down. Thankfully he had been able to explain a lot over the phone while Elizabeth was sleeping. "So she avoids anything about herself so we have been talking about us and you guys and she got a little bit more comfortable so let's keep along that line of conversation"

"What name did she choose dad?" Emma asked curiously. That was one of the few things he hadn't shared over the phone.

"I think that it would be best if it came from her. Speaking of, I want you to meet Emma and Killian!" He said placing a protective arm around Elizabeth. He didn't want to say her name out loud while they were outside just in case there were anyone around who would accidently overhear them.

"Hello Love, why don't we all go inside?" Killian said holding a hand out to the young woman. Elizabeth took a moment and looked up at David who nodded in approval so Elizabeth took Killian's hand and let him lead her inside.

"She looks so young" Emma said turning around and talking in a hushed tone to her parents

"She has been in foster care since she was 5 and just aged out. But now you can see why we decided to make her new age 14" Mary explained

"I guess so. Well we better get in there, I'm sure she knows we're talking about her" Emma said turning around and heading inside. They found Elizabeth and Killian in the kitchen getting their pizza.

"So do you prefer simple pizza or one with lots of toppings?" Killian asked

"I'm more of a just cheese girl I guess"

"Well then we have that in common, Emma loved all kinds of nasty things on her pizza. Now I finally have someone on my side" He said nudging her a little. A small smile went across her face as quickly as it had come but, it was a start.

"Well I guess I will just have to become a better negotiator" Emma said coming into the kitchen. It was so great to see her husband falling naturally into the role of a father figure. She knew it would take a long time for this girl to accept them as her parents, but she determined in that moment to do everything in her power to make sure this girl knew she was loved.

"This pizza looks so good! I mean, burgers are great but there is something about pizza" David said plating up his own pizza. The little family all moved to the living room and, surprisingly enough the conversation just flowed between the five. Mary and David loved getting to catch up with Emma and Killian and getting to watch them fall into a parental roll warmed their hearts. They knew that they had made the right decision for Elizabeth and that they would love her like she was their own.

"So we never did find out your name love" Killian said. He knew it was killing Emma but she just didn't know how to ask

"Oh, I figured David and Mary would have told you" Elizabeth said a bit embarrassed

"We thought that, because you picked your name, it would be your choice wither or not to share that" Mary said with a small smile. She knew that everything in Elizabeth's life had just been turned upside down and she wanted to give her a small piece of control back.

"Thank you…I really appreciate that" Elizabeth said. She was shocked by the fact that Mary had even thought about that. "My given name is Elizabeth…my new name…the name I chose…is Zoe"

"Zoe…that's a beautiful name" Emma said with tears in her eyes "I never told my parents this but…" She looked at Killian and he simply nodded. "Killian and I had found out we were pregnant right after we got married but…" that's when the tears started coming. Killian placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and continued.

"We were very excited to find out we were going to have a baby and had picked out both a boy and a girl name. Unfortunately, two weeks later we found out that we had had a miscarriage."

"The name we had picked out if it was a girl, was Zoe" Emma said taking the young woman's hand. Mary and David were now crying. Emma and Killian had never told them that they had had a miscarriage and it broke their hearts that their daughter went through that without them there. But at the same time, it was amazing that Elizabeth had picked the name Zoe. If that wasn't a sign they didn't know what was.

"I'm sorry…I…I can pick a different name…"

"Please don't. We always loved that name and we can't think of a better way to start our family, then by having you and you having the name that we had always wanted for our first daughter" Emma said moving closer to the young lady.

"Aye love, you're our daughter now" Killian said placing a hand on her shoulder.

All of this was a bit much for Eliz…Zoe. She never knew how to handle emotional moments like this. "Thank you. If it's okay, could you show me to my room? I'm really tired"

"Of course! We have it all set up for you" Emma said holding her hand out to her daughter and showing her to the new room they had set up. It wasn't too long after Zoe went to bed that the others followed suite. All the events of the last two days had been both physically and emotionally draining and they all needed the rest.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

 **Hello Everyone! Thank you for being patient with an update! I literally just walked in the door from my vacation to Disney World. It was a wonderful time with my family!**

 **HAPPY ONCE DAY! I'm super excited about this episode because the sneak peeks are so intriguing!**

 **As a special bonus I will post two chapters today!**

 **Couple of quick things, Some have worried that Zoe/Elizabeth being 14 is not going to work but I promise I did it for a reason that will display it's self in time. Also, in this chapter she does some things that some may say are out of character but I want you to remember that she has been a foster kid for 18 years and does whatever she has to do to survive which means doing things she wouldn't normally do in order to get by.**

 **Without further interruption, here is the next chapter!**

* * *

As soon as Elizabeth stopped hearing movement in the house she decided to venture out of her bedroom. She had slept so much during the car ride here that she was wide awake. She needed to get away from all of this for a while. She had noticed there were no alarms on her window and easily opened it up and slipped out into the backyard and then around to the front of the house. The neighborhood was like any other suburban town in America, except this one had palm trees.

So many thoughts were going through her head. She liked Emma and Killian so far, although she felt bad for picking the name that they had originally wanted for their first daughter. She knew that they had asked her not to change her name, but she wondered if that was for her benefit or theirs.

Elizabeth continued to wonder through the neighborhood when she saw a car pull up next to her and her blood ran cold.

"Hey little girl, isn't it a bit late for you to be out on your own?" It was a local cop who was out on patrol. She hadn't thought about it but she was sure that there was a local curfew for minors.

"I'm not a little girl and I'm fine thank you" She snipped back. She didn't want to be messed with, but more importantly, she didn't want Killian or Emma finding out.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. Are you going somewhere?"

"I'm fine. Please leave me alone" Elizabeth snapped at them. She was really hoping that if she put up enough attitude they would leave her alone

"Well young lady, I don't know if you know this, but there is a curfew for minors in this area. I'll let you off with a warning but I need to take you home and let your parents know that you're out here" With that the car stopped and the officer stepped out and gently guided Elizabeth into the back of the car. She was kicking herself now. She couldn't even show them an ID or tell them her new address.

"Now do you have any ID on you?" Elizabeth shook her head no. "Okay, could you tell me your name?" the officer asked before shutting the door. Elizabeth remembered what David had said about when she had to use her new name, she figured this qualified as one of those times.

"Zoe…Zoe Jones"

"Okay Ms. Jones and can you tell me where you live?"

"I just moved here today…I don't know my address" she replied timidly

"Okay…" The officer wasn't sure if he believed her or not but he had to try to get something that would help him know where she lived. He knew most of the families in this area and he couldn't remember any of them saying that they had someone coming to live with them. Then again, the only Jones he knew was the Sargent's family, and he knew they didn't have any kids or younger family members. "Can you tell me your parents name?"

Elizabeth took a moment. She would normally say she didn't have any but…now she did "Emma and Killian Jones". The officer stepped back for a moment. He figured this girl was lying.

"Are you sure?"

"Yea…I'm sure" Elizabeth said crossing her arms

"Alright. I know that house. We'll go drop you off and talk with them" and with that the officer shut the door. He hated to disturb his boss, but he had no other options. Within a few minutes they pulled up in front of the house. Emma recognized the rental car that she and the Nolan's had drove up in and she knew she was in hot water. She was supposed to be in protective custody and she was pretty sure that didn't involve sneaking out. Thankfully David and Mary hadn't left yet in case Killian and Emma changed their minds on wanting her to stay with them.

The officer got Emma out of the back seat and led her up to the front door before giving it a solid knock. It was only a few moments later when Killian came to the door.

"Who in the bloody…Zoe? Frank? What's going on?"

"Sorry to bother you Sargent but this young lady says she's your daughter?" the man said feeling horrible about having woken his Sargent up for something he figured was probably a lie.

"Aye, that she is. There will be an e-mail going out tomorrow explaining everything."

"Oh…well…in that case…um…"

"Thanks officer for bringing me home. Night Dad!" Elizabeth said trying to quickly slide past Killian but he caught her upper arm just as she stepped inside.

"Zoe…what were you doing out in the middle of the night?"

"What's going on?" Emma said coming to the door with her robe wrapped around her

"Our daughter decided to take a midnight stroll through the neighborhood" Killian said shooting a disapproving look at Elizabeth

"What?!"

"Frank, thanks for bringing her home. We'll take it from here"

"Have a good night Sargent" and with that the officer left and Killian shut the door while keeping a firm hand on Elizabeth's arm. The then led her to the couch.

"Elizabeth…what's going on?" Emma asked concerned. She knew what kind of threat Stults' and his men were to her now daughter and she never would have forgiven herself if something had happened.

"I just needed…I needed to clear my head"

"Please, let us know from now on. Our house isn't meant to be a prison, but we also can't just let you out and about in the middle of the night and not know where you are" Emma said placing a gentle hand on the girls' leg

"Aye, our job is to protect you and we can't very well do that if you aren't here to protect. Now can you promise this won't happen again?"

"You guys aren't going to send me back with Mary and David?" Elizabeth asked in shock. Any other family she had ever been with would have found the police knocking at their door at 4am a good enough reason to send her back

"No love. We told you, you're our daughter now." Killian said a bit taken a back. Why would she think that?

"We wouldn't have said yes if we weren't in this for the long haul. We know you haven't had the easiest life but, we promise that we will stick it out if you will" Emma said smiling at the teen. "But, we should prove to my parents that we can take care of you so, no more sneaking out okay?" Elizabeth nodded in agreement.

"Now, let's all get back to bed before we must be up, again shall we?" Killian said standing and offering a hand to each of his girls. They both led Elizabeth back to bed and Killian made sure to shut and lock the window for good measure before they retreated to their own room. This was going to be a long road, but they were ready for it.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

 **As promised, the second chapter for today! Enjoy!**

* * *

The next morning David and Mary got up early and made breakfast for everyone. Killian and Emma followed and explained what had happened the night before which made David and Mary a bit hesitant to leave Elizabeth with them. However, the couple promised to keep a better eye out as well as install an alarm system for the time being which seemed to be enough for the older couple, for now. Elizabeth was the last to wake and she looked very much like a zombie the way she walked into the kitchen and silently took her place before placing her head on the table.

"Good morning sunshine" David said teasingly

"Mornings are never good" She grumbled back

"I would imagine so…especially when night didn't come till after 4am" Mary said in a knowing voice.

Elizabeth lifted her head up off the table and looked at Emma and Killian "You told them, didn't you?"

"Had to kid. They didn't exactly sleep through it like we thought" Emma said with a wink

"Elizabeth please promise us you won't do that again" Mary said in a concerned voice. She knew Emma and Killian were going to be great parents, but they also had never had a…well I guess even at 18 she was still a teenager, and teenager were a whole different level of parenting

"I know, I know. I promise" Elizabeth said before dropping her head back on the table

David just laughed and brought her over a stack of pancakes "here you go sweetheart"

"Thanks" Elizabeth said finally getting the strength to sit up right as she reached for the syrup and drenched her pancakes. After breakfast Mary and David talked over specific details with the new little family about how life was going to look going forward. He would finalize all of Elizabeth's documents and send them, along with all her belongings in the next week. He also gave Emma and Killian some money so that Elizabeth could get some things to hold her over till her things arrived. He also let them know what papers they would need to fill out and mail back to make the adoption official as well. After that they got their things packed and decided to get a head start on their trip home that afternoon. By 5pm, it was just Emma, Killian, and Elizabeth.

* * *

After the three finished off the last of the leftover pizza from the night before, Emma and Killian thought that it was time to go over the ground rules for Elizabeth.

"So Elizabeth…" Emma started before Elizabeth interrupted her

"Aren't you supposed to call me Zoe?"

"Well love, when we're in the house here, you can still be Elizabeth. It's only when we leave the house that you have to be Zoe." Killian said coming into the living room after cleaning up

"Unless you want us to call you Zoe then we can do that" Emma chimed in

"I don't know…I mean…I guess I should get used to being Zoe…"

"Well how about this? We'll call you Zoe for now, and you can let us know if you change your mind okay?" Emma said placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. Eliz…Zoe, simply nodded back at the kind woman. "Now, Zoe, we do need to go over a few ground rules"

"Purely for your protection love."

"Like no sneaking out in the middle of the night?" Zoe said with a small smirk

"That would be at the top of the list, yes" Emma said with a bit of a chuckle. "At least until the trial is over, we aren't going to be able to let you out of the house without one of us present"

"Wow…"

Killian felt like he could see the anxiety rising up in the young woman and quickly jumped in "Now Zoe, we promise not to be overbearing. We don't expect you to tell us everything about you right off the back. We simply need to make sure that, when you're out and about, that no one tries to harm you. As soon as we feel it's safe, we'll allow you to have as much freedom as we can" He said smiling at the girl. He hoped she would take what he was saying to heart.

"This is all just…a lot to take in…I mean…you guys are great and all, don't get me wrong. It's just…I have never had anyone in my life that cared about me like you and the Nolan's seem to" Zoe said looking down at the ground. It broke Killian and Emma's hearts. What had happened to this girl that the simplest act of kindness brought out this in her?

"Well get used to it kid. We are going to treat you like we would if you were our biological kid. You will always have a family with us" Emma said deciding to finally hug the girl. She wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do but it was the only thing she could think of to show the girl that she cared.

Zoe leaned into the embrace but wasn't quite ready to reciprocate the gesture just yet. She really didn't understand these people and why they seemed to care so much about her. But, she also knew that she desired to be a part of their family. She just hoped that she didn't do something that would cause them to push her away. More accurately, she didn't want her walls to push them away.

"There's one more thing love" Killian said breaking the comfortable silence. "We know that last night was a lot for you but, because of the nature of the people who are after you, we're going to have an alarm system put in. It's not because we don't trust you, but because we want to make sure that we are taking every precaution we can. It will be armed at all times and we will change the code every day so if for some reason someone figured it out they wouldn't be able to come back and try it."

"So if I snuck out again…?"

"A very loud alarm would sound. Also, we'd kind of start to think you don't really like us all that much" Emma said with a hint of sarcasm. She wanted Zoe to know that they weren't trying to make her feel like a prisoner. "Also, we need to work on your back story!"

"Back story?"

"Aye, the story we tell people about where you came from. They may think it a bit strange if we told them Emma birthed a full-grown teenager" Killian said as he ruffled her hair.

That caused Zoe to actually laugh out loud. It was the first time they had seen her genuinely happy since she arrived the day before. "That makes sense. Well, David and Mary told me that we are telling everyone I'm 14"

"Aye, we are also telling everyone that we adopted you, which will be true in a matter of days here"

"Does this mean I have to go back to school?"

"Not if you don't want to. We know you have already graduated so we can tell people you're homeschooled, that way they won't question why you're home during the day and in 4 years we will just doctor up another graduation certificate" Emma said feeling pretty proud of coming up with that on the spot. One of her favorite parts of her job was coming up with different persona's so this was right up her ally.

"That sounds good I guess…But what about being able to drive? Once this trial is over, how am I going to be able to get around?" Zoe said hoping that they would just say that they would get her a fake license or something

"Well love, we're going to have to abide by the law on this one. For legal purposes you're 14 which means you'll have to wait till you turn 16 again before you can get another drivers license. But Emma and I will be more than happy to drive you anywhere you need. We just can't risk you driving around and having people question your actual age"

"Well that sucks"

"We know. We wish we could bend the rules but, that only puts you in danger of someone finding out who you really are" Emma said

"I understand" Zoe replied a bit cowardly. She really hadn't realized how much was about to change when she agreed to do this.

"Now Zoe, I must ask, did Mary and David already confiscate all your old documents and any of your electronics?" Emma said approaching the conversation lightly. She felt like this was one of those 'open mouth, insert fire hose' type of conversations but they had to cover everything now before it became a problem later.

"Yea, they took everything at the station when I arrived. But I have a question"

"Of course love, you can ask us anything"

"Do I have to call you guys mom and dad? I mean…it's fine if I do…it's just…"

"No love, not until you're ready. When we're in public it might be good in order to sell our story to the neighbors and what not like you did last night with frank, but here, you can all us Emma and Killian."

"We understand that in reality, you're still an adult, we can be whatever you want us to be. If that is more of an older brother and sister roll we can be that or we can be your parents. But we're going to let you set the pace on that" Emma added

"Thank you. You guys really have been so sweet. This is all a lot to take in and I think I need some time to think about it. If that's everything, I'm going to go ahead and excuse myself to go to bed"

"Aye, that's all. Sleep well. Tomorrow we will just relax and get to know each other, how does that sound?"

"That sounds good. Goodnight" and with that Zoe went to her room.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

 **Hello all you lovely readers. Another night another chapter. I hope you all are liking this story. I'm almost done posting the original 9 chapters so this weekend I will be working on adding to that as well as doing a few of my one shot requests so check it out!**

 **As always, please review and let me know what you think or what you want to see**

* * *

"Well I think that went well. First conversation as parents and no screaming. I say we did well, don't you love?" Killian said coming over and sitting next to Emma on the couch

"I don't know Killian. I feel like I'm walking in blind here. I mean, that poor girl is so damaged from people in her past. I just don't want her to be a yes robot because she's afraid we're going to throw her out" Emma said laying her head on his chest. "I'm so afraid we're going to be bad at this whole parenting thing"

"Come now, Emma. We have to have faith. Your parents wouldn't have asked us to do this if they didn't think we were capable of not just keeping this poor girl safe but also capable of being good parents to her. We just have to give ourselves grace in some areas" He said running his hand up and down her arm to comfort her.

"I know…I know…" She then sat up so she could look at his face "You did call the security company, right?"

"They'll be here first thing tomorrow morning…Are you taking the first shift or am I?" Emma simply smiled at him. The way that they were able to read each others minds was always something that made her feel like their relationship was special. She loved that most time she didn't have to say a word for him to know exactly what to do or say to make her feel better. "I'll take the first shift, you go ahead and get some sleep" and with that she kissed him square on the mouth. He then deepened the kiss until they were in a full blown make out session on the couch. They would have kept going except for the small sound that came from the hallway causing them both to stop.

"Ahemmm…" Zoe immediately froze in her place

"Well I guess they were right about parental instincts, kicked right in. Where do you think you're going?" Killian said as he stood up and straightened out his shirt

"I wasn't going anywhere, just getting something to eat" She said wringing her hands

"That's fine Honey, you're free to have anything you can find" Emma said placing a hand on Killian's arm, inclining him to take a seat to no avail

"Thanks…I didn't mean to bother you…"

"Wait" Killian interrupted her attempted exit "Why do you need your tennis shoes on to get food?" He said pointing at her feet. He wasn't buying her story. She also had on jeans and a light jacket that she hadn't been wearing during dinner.

"I'm sorry, if you don't want me to wear my shoes in the house…"

"Zoe?" Emma said now standing next to Killian

"What? Why are you both looking at me like that? Just go back to sucking each others faces" She snapped before going into the kitchen. Killian and Emma both made a b-line to follow her.

"Zoe what is going on?" Emma asked gently placing a hand on her shoulder which Zoe quickly shrugged off.

"Come on Zoe, you were fine before you went to bed, what changed?" Killian jumped in. Zoe continued to rummage through the cupboards. That's when something clicked for Killian. He quickly turned to Emma and whispered in her ear "Go in her room. Look for a phone or anything that would let her communicate with the outside world" Emma immediately went toward her room and left Killian with Zoe. Killian stepped forward and gently but forcefully turned Zoe around to face him holding both her shoulders.

"Zoe, look at me"

"What?!"

"Zoe, who did you contact?"

"I didn't contact anyone! Let me go!" But as much as she squirmed, Kilian was able to keep a firm grip on her.

"Killian, I found this" Emma said coming in with an older looking flip phone

"You went through my things?!" Zoe exclaimed

"You knew that was part of the deal Zoe, we asked you earlier if you had anything and you said that Mary and David took it all. Why would you lie to us?" Killian asked her point blank

"The last call was 10 minutes ago. Zoe who called you?" Emma said getting more and more concerned

"I don't have to tell you anything!" Zoe yelled back

"Zoe, Zoe look at me" Finally Killian took her face into his hands. "Zoe I am here to help you but I can't do that if you don't help me. Who called you and what did they tell you that has you so upset?" At this point Zoe completely broke down and Killian brought her to his chest and cradled her head. Emma came over and started gently rubbing her hand up and down her back. They both felt at a loss as to what to do.

After a few moment Zoe had regained her composure and was wiping away the tears from her eyes. Killian still kept a gentle hand on her arm. "Love? Can you tell us what's going on now?"

"My little sister called"

"Sister?" Emma asked confused

"Not blood sister…a former foster sister. She came by my new place and got scared when she found the place ransacked and was in a panic. I tried to tell her that I was okay but she was still freaking out" And then the tears came. Killian gently led her and Emma into the living room and sat her on the couch before taking a seat across from her on the coffee table.

"Zoe, I'm so sorry. Getting a panicked phone call from a loved one is never easy" Emma said breaking the silence. "At least she's okay right?"

"I don't know. There was a loud sound and I heard her scream…and then the line went dead…I have to go get her!" Zoe said standing up and trying to make a go for the front door but Killian had matched her movements and quickly placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back down onto the couch.

"Aye love, we do need to make sure she's okay but you can't go after her. Whatever happened, if it had to do with your identifying that killer, it means you're in just as much danger as she is. Now, we will call David and Mary and they will make sure that your sister is safe"

"I promise they will Zoe. They will take just as good care of her as they did for you. You said you trusted them right?" Zoe nodded in return. "Okay, I'm going to need you to tell me your sisters name so they can find her"

"I can't tell you that" Killian and Emma shared a confused look. This wasn't adding up. Zoe was concerned about her sister enough to lie to them and try and sneak out but not concerned enough to provide her name so they could protect her?

"Zoe…"

"I can't tell you because they will put her back in the system!" she blurted out. Now it all came together. Zoe must have been housing this girl at her new place once she aged out of the system and she didn't mention her because she figured that she would tell her to stay put until she could get back to her.

"Zoe, I know you don't want your sister to end up like you did and have to grow up in the system. But right now, we don't know where she is or who has her; and without a name we can't look for her. I promise that once she's found we will find a way for you to video chat with her and I will personally talk to my parents and we will do everything in our power to find her a family to adopt her. Okay?" Emma said stroking her hair. Zoe took a moment. She could tell that Emma wasn't lying to her but she also wasn't sure if she should trust them to not put her sister back in the system.

"Zoe, I don't mean to scare you but…love the longer we wait, the harder it's going to be to find her" Killian chimed in placing a hand on her knee

"You promise?"

"Yes Zoe, I promise. My parents are going to take good care of her"

"Okay…her name is Heidi…Heidi Potter"

"Thank you Zoe!" Emma exclaimed kissing the side of her head and going to call her parents.

"Thank you for telling us love. Now we can help her and make sure she gets to safety"

"Am I in trouble?"

"No love. I can't punish you for wanting to protect your family. But I need you to know that from now on you can trust us. We would never do anything that would hurt you or anyone else. But we can't do that if you aren't honest with us okay?"

"Okay"

"Alright now, how about we get you back to bed" Killian held out his hand and Zoe gratefully took it. He led her to her room and helped her get under the covers before walking toward the door and turning off the light.

"Killian"

"Aye love?"

"Never mind" That gave him pause, she wanted to ask him something. He knew he had to handle this moment very carefully. He walked back over and sat down on the edge of her bed

"What is it love?"

"It's stupid. I'm fine"

"Well if something's bothering you then it's not stupid" He said running his hand down the side of her face. Zoe was quiet for a minute before she finally decided to speak up.

"Would you mind staying with me?"

"Of course. Go ahead and close your eyes. I won't leave till you're asleep. I know how hard it can be to try and fall asleep in a new place" She moved over to give him room and he moved closer to her so he was sitting with his legs out. He began gently running his hand through her head and humming a toon. Within a few moments she was sound asleep.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

 **Happy Once Day! Here is another chapter. I'm sorry for those of you following my one shots that I haven't updated. I haven't been feeling well and haven't had much motivation to do anything.**

 **As always I love when you guys leave reviews or comments. I'm also looking for suggestions of things you would like to see happen in this story as I'm almost caught up. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Mom!"

"Emma? What's wrong? Didn't something happen to Eliz…I mean Zoe?"

"Not exactly…"

"Hold on Emma I'm putting you on speaker"

"Hey Kiddo, what's going on?"

"Hey dad, so…I don't know where to start…"

"Are you okay?" David asked. He was starting to get concerned

"Yes I'm fine, just…okay so Killian and I caught Zoe trying to sneak out again, while Killian was talking to her I went through her things and found a cell phone"

"Emma who did she call?" David persisted. If she told someone where she is then she and Killian were also in danger

"No, someone called her, a foster sister. Long story short, apparently this foster sister has been living with her. The sister went back to the apartment and found it completely ransacked and called Zoe freaking out and then Zoe said she heard a scream and the line went dead"

"Oh no, how is Zoe?" Mary asked

"She's pretty shaken up but Killian is with her"

"Okay Emma. What is this foster sisters name?" David asked wanting to get as much information as he could

"Her name is Heidi Potter"

"Okay and what number did she call from?"

Emma quickly flipped up the phone and hit a few buttons before the number showed on the screen "555-0100"

"Okay. Turn that phone off and destroy it. If someone got a hold of the sisters phone they could track it back to Zoe's phone and put you all in danger"

"I will…but dad, there's one other thing"

"Shoot"

"Zoe almost didn't give us the name because she is afraid that she will end up back in the system"

"Emma, we have to obey the law…"

"I know. But please promise me you will do everything you can to find that girl a forever family. Zoe will never trust me again in you don't"

"Emma I promise your father and I will do everything we can. Thank you for this information. We are still on the road but we will forward this information and have someone on it right away"

"Thank you guys. I'm sorry, I feel like I'm failing you"

"Emma, honey, you are not failing in the slightest" Mary reassured her "You are doing everything you can. There is no way you could have known about that phone, we didn't even know and we brought her to you"

"I know"

"Emma, please be careful" David chimed in

"We will. Love you guys"

"we love you too!" with that Emma ended the call. She was walking back toward the kitchen when she glanced into Zoe's room and stopped. She almost started crying as she saw Killian sitting on the bed next to a sleeping Zoe and gently stroking her hair and humming a calming toon. She just stood and watched the sight. Killian had been so excited when they had found out she was pregnant. He had always wanted to be a father. It devastated him when he found out about the miscarriage. This was their second chance. Sure it was unconventional, but it was the way it happened. Emma was amazed how easily being a dad was for him. He was kind yet firm with Zoe and Emma could tell she truly respected and trusted him. She just hoped that she could do as good as he was.

"Hey daddy" She whispered "How long have you been in here?"

Killian gave her a big grin. He liked being called that by his wife, even if he may never hear it from Zoe "About 10 minutes" he whispered back. "She asked me to stay" That broke Emma's heart even further. This poor girl had been through so much and had had to go through much of it alone. She determined in that moment that they would be there for her for everything from now on.

"I think she's asleep now" Killian whispered before kissing her head and tucking the blankets around her and gently lifting himself off the bed. He came over and took Emma into his arms and the two of them stood in the doorway and simply watched her sleep.

"She's going to be okay right? _We're_ going to be okay…right?"

"Of course love. We are going to take this one day at a time…that's all we can do" He replied placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Now, we should follow our daughters example. The security company will be here around 8am". With that he gently led her toward their bedroom. He loved being able to take care of both of his girls

The next morning Zoe could hear voices and movement in the house. She looked over at the small alarm clock that Emma and Killian had gotten for her and it said 8:20am. She groaned and rolled back over. It was way too early for her. She never liked mornings, much less getting awoken prematurely.

About five minutes later there was a small knock on the door and then Emma came in. "Good morning" She said sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"Morning" Zoe mumbled out

"So, the security company is here installing the new system and they need to come in here in about 15 minutes. I just wanted to give you a heads up…They said it's fine if you stay in bed" She added not wanting Zoe to feel like she had to get up right that minute.

"Why do they need to come in here?" Zoe asked confused. She figured it was just a general security system on the doors. She had seen them before at a few of her foster homes growing up.

"Well we asked them to put alarms on the windows…" Emma felt guilty. She knew Zoe was a good kid but she also knew that they had to do everything that they could to ensure her safety, even if it did seem a bit extreme.

"Really?" Zoe said giving her an annoyed look. She had only snuck out once but she didn't like the idea of her only emergency exit being alarmed.

"It's only a precaution" Emma said placing a gentle hand on her leg over the covers. "You want some breakfast? I can make you something or we have cereal…"

"I'll be fine. I'll come out in a minute" Zoe said cutting her off quickly. Last night she felt close to them and had wanted them to be close to her. It wasn't until this morning that it hit her that she may have let down her walls too quickly and that her emotions may have gotten the better of her.

"Okay…" Emma said not really sure how to respond. She then left and went back into the kitchen.

"Emma? You alright?" Killian asked as he took the last pancake out of the pan

"Yea…I'm fine" She said shaking her head and shooting him a smile before taking the plate of pancakes he was holding out to her

"Love, I know when you're lying…what did Zoe say?" Just then the main installer came over

"Hello folks, just wanted to run you through a few details while my partner here finishes up the final touches" Emma was relieved to have the pressure taken off her and was more than happy to let the man interrupt

"Of course! Thank you again for coming out on such short notice"

"Oh it's our pleasure. So you folks wanted the daily code set up right?"

"Aye, we don't want to chance someone memorizing the code and taking advantage"

"I can understand that sir, so all we have to do is…" Emma zoned out for a moment while the gentleman explained everything. Last night seemed to be so…well okay it wasn't perfect but Emma had felt that they had made some breakthrough. Maybe it was her. Maybe Zoe didn't like her. Killian had really done most of the emotional things last night. He was the one who confronted her and helped calm her down. He had been the one who she had asked to stay in her room till she fell asleep. She felt like such a failure.

"Did you get all that love?" Killian asked breaking her train of thought.

"Um…yea…I think so."

"Well if you folks have any problems or questions feel free to give us a call. I'm going to help my partner wrap up the bedroom window alarms and we'll be out of your hair"

"Thank you so much!" Emma said shaking his hand

"Emma…what is going on?" Killian said placing a gentle hand on the small of her back and bringing her closer to him

"I told you, I'm fine." She said placing a gentle hand on his face.

"Morning" Zoe said coming in and starting to rummage through the cupboards

"Morning Sweetie. Want some pancakes? I have some batter I still need to use" Killian said smiling at the teen

"Sure…" Zoe said looking around before finally taking a seat at the table

"This isn't over" he whispered to Emma before kissing the side of her head. She then moved to join Zoe at the table.

"How did you sleep last night?" Emma said trying to break the ice

"Fine"

Emma just picked at her pancakes and let the silence be until Killian finally brought over a huge plate of pancakes along with two empty plates and silverware "Alright my loves, here is the rest of them and Zoe, here is your plate and utensils" he said placing them on the table

"Thanks"

"You alright love?" Killian said placing a hand on Zoe's shoulder only to have her jerk away

"I'm fine…I'm just not a morning person" She tried to say that to explain her coldness toward them but knew by the look on Killian's face that she was epically failing

"alright love I can understand that. Do you want some coffee or orange juice…?"

"Coffee is fine, with cream and sugar"

"Coming right up" Killian said before crossing over the coffee pot

"So…." Emma said trying to break the silence

"You can stop with this whole act" Zoe finally blurted out

Emma about spit her food out she was so taken aback by Zoe's comment. "Zoe…I think…"

"Come on Emma!" Immediately Killian moved in and placed a firm hand on Zoe's shoulder and leaned down next to her ear "If you're upset about something love we will talk about it, but for your own safety, we need to play the game of you being our daughter until these men leave okay?" Zoe grunted and started angrily putting pancakes on her plate. Killian and Emma shared a scared look, they had no idea how they had gone from a sweet teenager who was starting to feel like their daughter to someone who was ready to rip their heads off.

Emma wanted to immediately call her parents and get them to come get her. What were they thinking that they could be the fake parents of this girl? They had never been parents before and to get thrown into the situation with someone who had no desire to be here and had been forced into the situation no less. This was all a bit too much for Emma to handle and, had the alarm installers not been there, she would have ran off and hid in her room and let Killian deal with her. He was obviously much better than she ever would be.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

 **You all can thank ATrueOncer for the quick update! They asked that I not make you all wait! lol!**

 **To answer a few questions**

 **ATrueOncer - Zoe isn't mad at Emma as much as she is scared. She realized how much she had let them in and started to panic and push them away**

 **Oncer4life11 - She was in such a state of shock when she first came there and now that some of the fog has cleared and the reality of Heidi coming to light so in a way she's felling like "What did I just do?" and is trying "undo" the closeness because she's scared (I based her a lot off of Emma in the show).**

 **So without further interruption..here is the next chapter!**

* * *

A few minutes later the repair man left and it was time to have a talk as a family.

"Alright Zoe…"

"Stop Calling Me That!" Zoe screamed. Killian and Emma were in total shock

"Alright love, we won't call you that anymore. Would you like us to call you Elizabeth while we're at home?"

"I want you two to stop acting like this is normal! I'm not your kid okay? I'm sorry you lost your own kid but you can't project that on me!"

"Sweetheart" Emma said trying to jump in

"STOP!" Zoe screamed before an uncomfortable silence fell on the room. No one knew what to say. Zoe felt out of control and Killian and Emma were at a loss as in what they could do to regain control of the situation. Finally, Zoe got up and went to her room slamming the door. At that moment, Emma burst into tears. Killian immediately rushed to her side.

"Please don't cry love. This is all new, for all of us. We just need some…"

"Time? Really Killian? In the span of 24 hours we have gone from a teenage girl who allowed us to care for her to a raging teenager who won't even talk to us!"

"I know Swan, I know this is hard but this girl has gone through a traumatic experience. Last night she felt safe and now she doesn't. We have to find out what about us or our home is making her feel that way. We can do it" He said taking her face into his hands before kissing her forehead

"You know it's me she doesn't feel safe with right?"

"Why would you say that?"

"Killian, she let you sit with her as she fell asleep. She listens to you when you tell her to do something. You did so well last night and this morning helping her to calm down and bringing things back to center. I just stood there with no idea on how to handle it"

"Well in all fairness Swan, you are an only child, I have an older sibling. I know what an older brother is supposed to be and what they aren't. I know that Zoe is supposed to be our daughter but I don't think she's ready for that. So, I treat her like Liam treated me. Like a younger sibling."

"How did I get so lucky to marry such a brilliant man?" Emma said taking his face in her hands

"You forgot devilishly handsome" He replied before closing the space between them and planting a kiss on her lips. They continued to kiss for a moment before Emma finally pulled away.

"As much as I would like to continue this, we need to decide how we are going to handle this situation. She is really mad at us for…well I don't know what we did but it was something"

"Aye, that was a strange outburst that she had there. I think that we need to leave her alone for a bit"

"Killian, if we are going to be her parents for a minimum of 4 years when she turns 18…again…we can't just let her get away with blowing up like that"

"You are correct, but in this situation, we are all still learning how to live together. Once the relationship is there, we will have more leverage to have those conversations"

"Killian…"

"Emma I know this is hard. I want to go into that room and get to the bottom of it too, but I also know that we are only going to damage this relationship further if we don't give the girl some space"

"We are really going to have to work on being on the same page. I really think we need to talk to her"

"Alright love, we talk to her. But we have to make sure that we are both calm and that we are going in there with the desire to simply find out what is wrong and we don't push, we let her talk"

"Killian…Alright…fine…let's go talk to her" and with that they both headed toward the small bedroom.

* * *

Zoe slammed the door and turned the fan on as high as it would go before bursting into tears. She felt completely out of control. She felt like she was watching someone else live her life and she had no way to stop it. It felt like the whole world had just imploded on her and she was incapable of putting it back together. She felt vulnerable and needy and she didn't know how to even begin to understand this family that seemed to want to be there to protect and care about her…it was all just too good to be true.

All the emotions flooded through her at rapid speed and she began to gasp for air because of how hard she was crying. Normally she would run at times like these. She would run until she felt calm and could think straight. Being in this room with no way of escape made her begin to feel claustrophobic. She began to hyperventilate but caught herself before she passed out. She didn't want Emma and Killian to panic if they walked in and saw her like that. She grabbed her inhaler and took it. Slowly but surely the room began to come in clear and she was able to start thinking clearly.

She then grabbed the small pad of paper and pen that were on the night stand and began to write down a pro's and con's list.

Pro's. I have two people who say they care about me. I don't have to tell anyone about my past. I get my own room and I don't have to compete with other kids for attention or even food.

Con's. I can't leave without someone being with me. I lose all of the privileges of being an adult. I can't take care of Heidi and I can't contact her to let her know I'm okay or know if she's okay.

She looked at the lists in front of her and realized there were just as many reason that this situation was a benefit as it was a curse. She really felt bad about Heidi. Even though they weren't related by blood, she was the closest she had ever had to family. She kept replaying the sound of Heidi screaming over and over again in her head. As much as she wanted things to work out with Killian and Emma, she had to help Heidi.

She got up and began to throw her few belongings into her bag when the door opened.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

 **HAPPY ONCE DAY!**

 **Here is another chapter! Here we see all of Zoe's emotions come flooding out and poor Emma and Killian are just trying their best to be there for her.**

 **Let meh now what you guys think and please let me know if here is anything that you want to see!**

* * *

Emma and Killian stood at the door staring at the handle. Neither of them knew if what they were doing was right. They had no reference for raising a teenager. However, once they heard the banging of drawers, they knew they had to go in.

Once the door was open they both stood looking at Zoe throwing her few belongings into her duffle bag.

"Zoe?" Emma asked. Zoe immediately spun around in shock. She hadn't thought that they would be coming in her room.

"I'm leaving" Zoe said matterafactly. She wasn't going to let them talk her into staying.

"No…you're not" Killian said walking over and flipped the flap closed on her duffle bag followed by placing his hand on top to keep her from being able to continue her manic packing.

"Killian…take your hand off my bag" Zoe said through gritted teeth.

"Zoe…"

"STOP! BOTH OF YOU! I'M LEAVING AND YOU CAN'T STOP ME!" she screamed. She then collapsed on the floor and began to sob. She felt completely out of control and she couldn't hold her emotions in any more. Emma immediately got down on the floor and wrapped her arms around the young woman while she cried while Killian moved to her other side and took her hand into his. The trio sat like this for about twenty minutes while Zoe slowly stopped crying and was able to calm down.

"I'm sorry" came Zoe's small voice

Emma pulled back from her a bit until she could see her face "You have nothing to be sorry for" she said as she took her face into her hands. "There are times when life just gets to be too much. You have been though a lot in the last 72 hours; you can't expect to be able to just act like nothing happened" she finished moving a small piece of hair out of her face.

"But I have to be strong…I have to be there for Heidi…I have…I have to…to go" She got out between gasps. She was starting to have a hard time breathing as she went into a total panic.

Killian squeezed her hand a bit tighter "Listen to me love. In, out, in, out…there you go…listen to me and take a deep breath" he coached her till she calmed down. "There you go. You're just fine and Heidi is going to be find to"

"You don't know that"

"I do" Emma chimed in "My parents said that they are getting the officers in their station to start looking for her right away and my parents don't say things they don't mean."

"She's right love. Mary and David are going to make sure that she is taken care of. But they can't take care of her if they are worried that you are also in danger" Killian added.

"I can't leave her alone. If they find her they're going to send her back. I can't let that happen" Zoe said starting to get worked up again. Emma placed a gentle hand on her upper arm and started to gently run her hand up and down to try and help Zoe keep her cool.

"Zoe, You don't know that. I talked to my parents and they already said that they are going to do everything in their power to make sure that Heidi has a good home. They aren't going to let anything bad happen to her." She said now moving to stroke her hair.

"Love you are trying to take too much on. I know you're used to having to deal with everything on your own. That's all changed now. You only need to worry about your safety. Let Emma and I deal with the rest" Kilian said sandwiching her hand between his two. Emma and Killian shared a wordless conversation. They knew that they could keep talking till they were blue in the face, but that wasn't going to help this all to become truth to Zoe. They agreed that they would give her some time alone before they tried to push her any further.

"Take some time to calm down and relax. We'll be in the living room if you need us" Emma said. She then placed a small kiss on the girl's forehead and stood up before helping Killian to do the same.

Zoe sat on the end of the bed with her head in her hands. She hadn't felt this hopeless in a long time. She was normally good about stuffing her emotions away and focusing on the logical next step. There was something about these people that brought out her emotions in ways that she wasn't used to. She had never felt safe enough to lean on anyone but herself…until now that is.

She stood up and walked into the small bathroom attached to her room and splashed cold water on her face to try and calm down a bit. She had to come up with a way to make sure that Heidi was okay. She couldn't let her go back into the system, even if she had to put herself in danger to do it.

Once the door closed Killian wrapped his arms around Emma and held her. They both had the shared feeling of hopelessness and fear combined in their stomachs. They wanted to help her, to make her feel safe here. They also knew that someone who had been through all that she had and to have all of this change thrown at her at once, it was going to take time.

"Killian…are we sure we can do this?"

"Aye love. We have both been through these types of things before. You of all people should understand her fear of the system"

"But I was only in the system until I was five and I found my parents. This girl has been in the system for 18 years. I mean, that changes you in ways neither of us can ever understand. She has never had a family"

"Then we show her what it means to have one. I know that all of this is unorthodox but we have a chance to help this girl. We just have to take it one day at a time" He said taking her hands into his.

"Sometimes I wonder how you can always find optimism in every situation" Emma said closing the gap between them and laying her head on his shoulder. "I mean, I know deep deep down somewhere inside that we can do this but the larger part of me is feeling like we've already failed"

"And that is why you have me…to remind you of that small part inside of you that knows we can do this. Sure it's going to be difficult but we have never been one's to take the easy path"

"I love you"

"I love you too" The two stood there for a moment enjoying each others presence. Eventually hook began to rub his hand up and down Emma's back "Alright love, Let's get back to our day. Zoe will come around when she's ready"

"You're right. I'm going to go to the store and pick up a few things" she then pulled away and gave him a quick kiss before heading toward the door and putting on her shoes. "Any requests?"

"Why don't you grab some of the basic and then stop by that little dinner we love and get dinner?"

"Will do" Emma said as she pulled on her red leather jacket. And with that she was out the door leaving Killian to look out for Zoe

Zoe studied the newly installed window alarm. After some googling she finally was able to figure out that it was a magnetic system. One magnet on the window frame that connected with the magnet on the window its self. The alarm was engaged when the two magnets lost contact. Zoe then looked around and finally found a small magnet on the mirror in her bathroom that she thought would work. She knew she only had one chance to get this right. She got her one hand ready to open the window with the other one ready to slide the magnet onto the base.

"Here goes nothing…" She moved her hands in a fluid motion pulling the window up and sliding the magnet into place.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

 **Hello everyone! I hope you all are having an amazing week! Mine has been busy with no plans of slowing down! :/ But it's all good.**

 **Here is the next chapter. I had one reviewer who felt these were short and that it was taking too long to move on. I was really trying to give background to the story and they are a tad short but the different cut off points just made sense. In the next few chapters it moves along a bit faster and a few chapters are a bit longer.**

 **In this chapter there is one part where it may seem like Emma is undermining Killian but make sure to read all the way through and you'll understand why**

 **As always, let me know what you want to see and I will do my best to incorporate it somehow!**

* * *

Killian began to start cleaning up the dishes from breakfast, in a way this felt like a Saturday. It was going to be strange being home all the time for the next few weeks as he and Emma helped Zoe get settled in. It took him about 20 minutes to finish things up and put away the left overs. He then decided that he would sit down and see what was on TV. He knew that Emma would be home later and that Zoe needed some space so he saw no harm in relaxing for a little while after the emotionally draining morning.

He was starting to feel himself begin to drift off when the security alarm went off causing him to literally jump up off the couch. He looked around and didn't see anything that would cause the alarm to sound so he immediately ran to Zoe's room and threw open the door

Zoe held her breath as she executed her plan. She quickly threw the window open with one hand while moving the magnet into place with the other. However she wasn't fast enough and as soon as the magnets lost contact the alarm went off causing Zoe to jump and let out a small yelp which she quickly hid by throwing her hand over her mouth. She immediately went to work removing the magnet and shutting the window. Unfortunatley she wasn't fast enough.

"Zoe! What are you doing?" Killian yelled rushing over to where she was standing by the window.

"Nothing I was just standing by the window and the alarm went off" Zoe lied as she quickly slid the magnet into her pocket on her pants.

"Don't move" Killian said while he ran to the living room and turned off the alarm. He then returned to Zoe's room and found her sitting on the bed with her hands wrapped around her knee's. Killian took a deep breath before coming in and sitting on the bed facing Zoe. "Zoe, what happened?"

"I told you, I was just standing there looking out the window when the alarm went off. Maybe it's just super sensitive?"

"Zoe…"

"What?! Why do you think I'm lying?!" She busted out. She really just wanted him to get out and leave her alone.

Killian than got up and walked toward the window and found that the window was unlocked. He knew that he had locked the window the night before and figured that the security company would have relocked them once the alarm was installed. "Zoe….the window is unlocked" He said turning around and staring at her.

Zoe immediately looked down at the bed. She knew she had been caught. Killian went to sit on the bed again when he heard the front door open.

"I'm home" came Emma's voice.

"Come on Zoe, I'm not leaving you in here" Killian said gently touching her shoulder and willing her to get up off the bed. Zoe knew she wasn't going to be able to say no but she also didn't want to go and face Emma and have her be disappointed. However, she reluctantly got up and allowed him to escort her to the living room.

"Hey you two, is everything okay?" Emma asked as she was putting away the groceries

"We're fine" Zoe said while throwing a side look at Killian begging him not to tell

"We will talk about it later. Right now I think we all need to eat. What did you get for us love?" Killian said allowing Zoe a bit more time before he told Emma.

"Okay…" Emma said a bit curious why Killian was delaying telling her what was going on "I got us all some burgers and onion rings and I grabbed some mint chocolate chip ice cream for dessert!" She said showing the pair before putting into the freezer

"Sounds great" Killian said guiding Zoe over to the table. They both took a seat and Killian handed out the food.

"Oh! Zoe! I almost forgot! I picked you up a few pieces of clothing for you to help tide you over till my parents are able to send you your things. I hope you like them but if not, it's not an issue to return them and get you something different."

"Thanks…I'm sure their fine" Zoe said picking at the remaining onion rings on her plate. Emma look at Zoe and then at Killian and knew that they couldn't keep going on like this.

"Okay you two. What happened while I was gone?" Emma finally said, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Nothing happened…I'm going to go to my room" Zoe said standing up to move when Killian reached up and put a hand on her forearm and gently pushed her back down.

"Not so fast lass. She attempted to sneak out of her window effectively setting off the new alarm system"

"I DID NOT! I told you! I was standing by the window and it just went off"

"Then why was the window unlocked love?" Killian asked calmly.

"It had to have been the security people! I didn't touch the window!"

"Okay Zoe. I believe you" Emma broke in reaching across and taking her hand. "Killian, why don't you go watch some TV. I'm going to take Zoe into her room and show her the new clothes I got her" Killian nodded and allowed his wife to take things from this point.

Emma then led Zoe back to her bedroom and brought the clothes along with her. "So I got you a couple of shirts that I thought you may like. They may seem a little young but we are trying to make people thing you're 14."

"They're nice…thank you" Zoe said barely looking up to see the clothes laid out before her.

"Zoe…"

"Okay I did it! I tried to tamper with the window and it failed. But I can't stay here Emma! I have to go and help Heidi. I can't let her end up like I did" Zoe said starting to get up and pace the room.

Emma stood and took a gentle hand on both of her arms and looked her in the eye. "Zoe. I understand not wanting your sister to be in the system. I was in the sytem myself till I was 5. But I also cannot let anything happen to you. Killian and I can't let you go and that's how it has to be. I'm not trying to be mean. I'm not trying to keep you from your family; But I am going to do everything in my power to keep you safe"

Zoe broke down into another round of tears and Emma pulled her close and held her. Maybe she was better at this than she had originally thought. After a few minutes Emma pulled back and put Zoe's face into her hands "now, can we go talk to Killian? I think you owe him an apology" Zoe nodded and Emma hugged her again before putting her arm around her and leading her into the living room. She had her sit in between she and Killian.

"Go ahead honey" Emma said. Killian had shut the TV off when he saw them coming out and was not turned with his full attention on Zoe.

"I'm sorry"

"I appreciate that love. I forgive you. I only got upset because I don't want anything to happen to you" He said taking her hand in his like he had earlier when they were in her room. "I know that you are a strong and independent woman and that doesn't have to change. You can still be strong and be willing to lean on those around you"

"I don't know how" Zoe said through tears

"Let us help you figure it out" Emma said moving some hair out of her face

"We're all new to this love. We have to give each other room to make mistakes, but we also have to trust each other"

Zoe just nodded and Emma and Killian each wrapped their arms around her. "Now, how about I dish all of us up some ice cream and we watch a movie?" Emma said wanting to bring some lightness into the room.

"I think that's good!" Zoe said laughing at Emma's awkward transition. Maybe she could make this work. Maybe, just maybe, she could finally have a family.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

 **Because you guys are the best readers ever, another chapter! This one is a bit longer than the last and we do a bit of a time jump. Please keep in mind that I based Zoe a lot of of Emma and how Emma always does what she feels is right no matter what other people say that she should do.**

 **Please keep the reviews coming! I know someone said they would like to see Heidi come and stay with Emma and Killian so we will see :) if anyone else wants to see anything or as an idea for an interaction between any of the characters please feel free to leave a review or PM me and I will do what I can.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The next few weeks actually went surprisingly smooth. Mary and David had Stult's in custody and a trial date was set for the next month. Killian had returned to work at the police station and Emma worked on her cases from home and did her field work after Killian came home and Zoe had started online college classes.

They had started having friends over periodically to meet Zoe. It was a little awkward for Zoe during those time because she had to call Killian and Emma mom and dad during those times but she also kind of liked it. She had never had anyone to call mom and dad.

The only thing that still was lurking in everyone's mind was Zoe's missing foster sister, Heidi. No one had heard from here and there were no leads as to where she might have gone. At this point they weren't even sure if she had been taken. David and Mary were starting to wonder if she had found a place with another foster sibling. Killian and Emma tried not to approach the topic unless Zoe brought it up because they knew how sensitive an issues this was for her.

What no one knew was that Zoe was doing some investigation into Heidi's whereabouts on her own. When Emma thought she was working on her online college courses she was actually using a fake profile to contact a few individuals that may know Heidi's location or what might have happened to her. She knew she was dead if Killian or Emma figured out what she was doing but she did her best to cover her tracks and went in and deleted the history on the computer every time she was finished.

"How's it going kiddo?" Emma asked coming over to the table with two cups of hot chocolate. The sound made Zoe jump and she immediately switched screens on her computer

"Oh hey…it's good. Just trying to work on this paper" Zoe lied as she picked up her cup

"Well I'm sure you'll do fine. Want me to proof read it for you?" Emma asked reaching toward the computer

"NO!...I mean, not yet…I'm not done" Zoe said trying to cover her outburst.

"Okay…I didn't mean to make you upset"

"You didn't…I'm sorry"

"It's okay kid. I'm going to work on some paperwork in my office but come get me if you need anything" and with that Emma walked over and checked that the alarm system was armed and went to her office. However, she wasn't going to work on paperwork, she was going to call Killian. Something was up with Zoe.

Zoe watched Emma walk out of the room and immediately went back to her computer. Someone who knew both Heidi and Zoe had finally gotten in contact with her and she was now able to talk directly to Heidi! Her sister was doing a pretty good job with making her way to Florida. Zoe had found out that on the night of the phone call, Heidi has screamed because an armed man had come into Zoe's apartment. She somehow managed to get away from him and she had been trying to make her way to Florida ever since.

"Elizabeth, are your new parents going to be okay with this?" Heidi asked

"Honey you have to start calling me Zoe. And yes, they will be fine with it. Where are you right now?"

"At an internet Café in Georgia"

"How are you going to get down here?"

"I'm working on getting enough money to buy a bus ticket. I am only short about $50"

"That's so good!"

"Yea. I guess. I will let you know when I get the ticket"

"okay, I'll message you tomorrow" and with that Zoe exited out of the window and began to wipe the history when she heard the front door open

"Hello Love, I was just about to leave the office here. Do you need me to pick anything up?" Killian asked

"No, I think that Zoe is hiding something from us"

"What do you mean?"

"I asked her if I could proof read the paper she was writing and she about bit my head off. I'm starting to wonder if she is in contact with someone under the rouse of taking online classes"

"But we were the ones who put in the card information for her to do the classes"

"I'm not saying that she isn't doing her classes, but I am saying that the amount of time she is spending on the laptop isn't JUST for her classes."

"We should check the memory on the computer. I'll do it tonight after she goes to bed."

"Okay. I told her that I was doing paperwork in my office so she doesn't know I called you"

"Alright love, I'm pulling into the driveway, see you in a minute" and with that he hung up.

"Hey Killian!" Zoe said quickly shutting the top of the laptop.

Killian walked over and disarmed and rearmed the alarm system before greeting his daughter "Hello Lass, working on your classes?"

"Yep…wrapping up for the day" Zoe said as she tried her best to remember the code that she had just watched Killian punch in.

"Well that's good. Say, go ahead and leave the laptop out here, I need to do a few things for the station" Killian said making sure to study her facial expression.

Zoe felt her face go flush. She knew she had wiped the history, but she also knew that they had ways of finding out anyway. She really hoped that they wouldn't go looking for anything

"Um yea…sure."

"Perfect. Well go get ready, we're going out to eat tonight" He said coming over and kissing the top of her head and then picking up the laptop. Zoe felt her stomach leap into her throat but she immediately obeyed and went to her room while Killian went toward the office.

* * *

"I've got the laptop" Killian said holding it up as he came into the office where Emma had finally begun on her paperwork

"Oh Good" she said taking it from him and getting right to work on trying to find a clue about what Zoe may be up to

"Are you sure she's up to something? Maybe she is just really insecure about school. Maybe she's got a learning disability?" Killian argued hoping that Zoe was in fact, just doing her classes.

"I already checked with my parents and they said there is nothing on file as far as learning issues. Killian there has…Oh no"

"What is it love?"

Zoe quietly tip toed to the alarm system. She knew she only had one chance to get this code right or she was screwed. She typed in the numbers she had seen Killian type in and the displayed flashed 'unarmed' which caused her heart to begin to race as she quietly opened the door and slipped off down the street. She was going to get Heidi if it was the last thing she did.

Zoe began to make her way up the street. She had gotten a pretty good idea of how this neighborhood was laid out and she was able to quickly get to the main drag and find her way to the little internet café that was frequented by many of the locals.

She quickly logged on and let Heidi know that she was on her way to try and get her and asked her where she was exactly but Heidi wasn't online. Zoe kept pulling her hat down to cover her face. She knew that Killian and Emma wouldn't hesitate to use their positions in law enforcement to get a hold of any and all surveillance tapes once they realized she was gone. She just really hoped that Heidi would get back online soon so she didn't have to stay here very long.

"What is it Emma?"

"Killian she found Heidi"

"What? How? Not even David and Mary Margret have been able to track the lass down"

"Well somehow Zoe did. She created a fake online profile and found Heidi and she is headed toward us right now!"

"ZOE!" Killian yelled. They were going to deal with this right now "ZOE?! Where is that girl?" Killian said walking out into the living room and not seeing her. He turned around to go check her room when he noticed the alarm system "EMMA! Zoe's unarmed the alarm system! She's gone!"

Immediately Emma came running out to see the look of panic on her husbands face. "Let's go! She couldn't have gotten far!" Emma said pulling at Killian to follow her.

"I'm calling the station. I'm going to have everyone looking for her"

"Killian you can't do that and you know it" Emma said stopping him and grabbing him by the shoulders. "We can't let them know that she's under our protection. A teen age girl missing for ten minutes is going to bring up questions. Now, she couldn't have gotten to far. We will find her" She said before kissing him

"You're right love. I'm sorry. I've just never been this scared before"

"I know, me to" She said before they both exited the house and locked the door behind them.

"Now where do you think she went?" Killian asked as they looked up and down both sides of the street with no sign of Zoe.

"My best guess is she headed toward the main drag so she could blend in and possibly hitch a ride with someone to get closer to the Florida Georgia line"

"Isn't that a singing group?" Killian asked confused

"Yes honey it is. But Heidi in her last message said she was in Georgia so if Zoe can get close to the boarder than she gets closer to Heidi" She said trying to hold back her giggles at her husband.

"Oh I see. Alright let's head that way then. You want go get in the car or walk?" He asked her

"Lets take the car. We may or may not be able to catch up with her on foot."

"Good Point, let's go"


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

 **I hope you all are having a good start to your weekend! I know I have been CRAZY busy and I am looking forward to a weekend in which means I will be updating my one shots so go ahed and check that out!**

 **As always, let me know what you want to see. So far only one reader has has a suggestion which we will see if I can include but let me know if there is a specific idea or scene you want to see!**

 **Keep the reviews coming as always because you guys are literally the best and keep me writing!**

* * *

Zoe kept a good look out at the people coming and going from the small café to make sure that no one took too much notice of her. She really didn't want to continue to sit there but she also wanted to be able to get in contact with Heidi and this was the only way.

Finally the little green dot next to her sisters name appeared and she breathed a sigh of relief

"Hey where are you?" she quickly typed

"I'm in Florida!"

"Where?"

"Not quite sure"

"Ask someone for an address, but don't let them think you are a run away"

"Okay" Heidi typed back. Zoe was starting to get nervous. They were so close that she could almost feel her sister's presence but she also knew that one wrong step could put them both in a lot of trouble.

"I Got it! 145 N 10th St" Zoe quickly plugged the address into google and got directions to there from where she was and realized her sister was still about an hour away.

"Okay Heidi. I want you to stay put and I will come to you. You're about an hour away from where I am. Please don't leave there unless you absolutely have to!"

"Okay, but how will you know if I have to move?"

Zoe took a deep breath and felt the cell phone in her pocket. She had swiped it off Killian when he had kissed her head and she knew that eventually he was going to figure it out but she also needed a way for Heidi to contact her. "Okay, I'm going to give you an emergency number but it is only that. You can only call me if it is an absolute emergency because I swiped my dad's cell phone" it was the first time she had typed out dad and, for a millisecond it felt good.

"Okay, I understand" Heidi wrote back. Zoe quickly typed up the number and sent it off with a goodbye and wiped the history on the computer before bolting out the door.

"Killian I need you to call my parents and tell them what we know so they are up to date." Emma said as the pulled onto the main drag of their little town.

Killian went to grab his phone but found his pocket was empty "Emma, my phone's gone"

"Are you sure you didn't leave it at home?"

"Aye, I put it in my pocket when I got off the phone with you and then…"

"What?"

"That little pitpocket! Zoe must have lifted it off of me when I took the laptop. I leaned in to give her a kiss on the head and my pocket would have been right where she could get it!"

"we are going to be having a serious talk with this girl when we get her home!" Emma said continuing to scan the streets.

"In better news, I can at least track it. Give me your phone love" Emma quickly pulled hers out and handed it to him. He quickly opened it up and selected the 'Find My Phone' app. He quickly typed in his information and his phone showed that it was just up the road on the left but headed away from the internet café. "Up here Emma, she just left the internet café and she's on the move."

It didn't take but a few moments for them to see her moving up the side walk wearing a gray tank top, a black hat and carrying the small black backpack that had come in the mail with her other things. They didn't want this to look like an abduction so they moved up the road and park the car and cut her off as she was coming up the side walk.

Killian placed his hands on her shoulders and stopped her in her tracks "Car. Now." He said before he moved his hand to her upper arm and guided her safely across the street and helped her into the back of the car

"Killian…"

"Don't Zoe. Now is not the time. I recommend you stay quiet until we get home. And Give me my phone" Killian said through gritted teeth. He was furious that she had ran off but even more upset that she had been lying to them for who knows how long and putting herself and them in danger.

Zoe pulled out the phone and gave it to Killian before sitting quietly cursing herself for not thinking this through more than she had. She knew that what she did was wrong, but she wasn't going to apologize for trying to help her sister.

 **XXXXX**

Once they got to the house Killian got out and helped Zoe out but didn't let go of her upper arm, he wasn't going to give her a chance to bolt again. They walked in the house and Killian let go of her arm "Couch" he said going over and resetting the alarm and setting a new code.

"Zoe what in the world were you thinking?!" Emma asked sitting on the coffee table directly across from Zoe who sat with her face looking down at the floor. "We told you that we would help you! There is no reason that you needed to keep Heidi's whereabouts hidden from us! My parents have been looking for her for weeks! They could have already got her and had her in a safe location!"

"Oh you mean like another foster home?!" Zoe sniped back. She was fed up with Emma lecturing her. Emma had no idea what she was going through. "She won't be safe there! I had to make sure she was okay and that she was safe on my own and I really could care less if that mean that I put my safety at risk!"

"Well you've made that pretty clear love" Killian said coming over and pacing the living room "You obviously don't care about anyone's safety at all! You put me, Emma and Heidi in danger, not to mention Mary and David who have been looking for the poor girl and putting in extra hours to find her!" Killian had finally had it. He couldn't understand what it was going to take to get through to this girl that they wanted to be a real family, that they loved her.

"I didn't mean for this to effect anyone else!"

"How Zoe? How was what you were doing NOT going to affect everyone else? You knew that Killian and I would be worried sick. You knew that My parents were already worried about you and Heidi and making sure that you were safe. How was your choice to go behind our back and sneak off to meet your sister NOT going to affect everyone else?" Emma said getting down to the realities of what was really going on.

"Zoe, I don't know how much more I can do to show you that we want you here. We already look at you as our daughter. I know that may be difficult for you to take but we do. We love you." Killian said coming and sitting next to her.

This whole time Zoe simply sat staring at the carpet below her without saying a word or showing her face. She didn't know what to say.

"Zoe? Can you please at least look at us?" Emma said placing a gentle hand on her knee. It took a moment but Zoe finally brought her eyes to meet Emma's. "I know that what you did was because you value having family and you are a selfless person to be willing to put your life at risk for someone else. That is an admirable quality. However, there is also a small amount of self-preservation that you have to have or else the things you do are not seen as heroic, but as reckless. Now I need you to tell me where your sister is so we can get her to a safe location"

"By safe location you mean a foster home don't you?" Zoe said feeling defeated. She didn't want to let Heidi down

"Not necessarily love. Being that she now knows where you are and, more importantly, who you really are, it may be necessary for her to be in the witness protection program as well. We don't know if anyone has gotten wind of your connection and may try to manipulate her" Killian added.

"What if she stayed with us?" Zoe asked in a very small voice that Killian and Emma almost missed it. "I mean…if she knows who I am and where I am, maybe it would just be best if she stayed here instead of going away"

Killian and Emma looked at each other for a moment. They hadn't really considered the possibility. They felt overwhelmed just looking after Zoe, two kids may be a bit of a stretch to sell to the neighbors but, maybe it could work.

"Tell you what kid. I'll call my parents and talk to them and see what they think."

"But until then we need to make sure she is safe" Killian added "Where is Heidi right now?"

"An hour away. She sent me the address"

"Alright. Well why don't you come with me and we will go pick her up. I know she would probably feel better about getting in a car with a total stranger if someone she knew was there" Killian said. "Besides, then I can make sure I know where you are" he added playfully.

"I'm in trouble aren't I?" Zoe finally asked looking between the couple

"Oh yea! We've been easy on you up until now but this stunt isn't going to fly" Emma said giving her a knowing look

"I figured"

"Killian and I will talk about it and let you know but you two need to get going" Emma said standing up and ushering them toward the door. While Zoe got her coat on Emma came over and kissed Killian before whispering into his ear "Don't let her out of your sight"

"I never planned on it love" He said before kissing her back "We'll be back shortly" and with that the two were out the door and Emma was on her way to call her parents.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

 **You guys have been such devoted followers I have to post this now. I have to say I think this is my favorite chapter I've written so far! Sorry if there are typo's because I literally just got done writing it and I want you all to read it!**

 **The major theme of this chapter is making choices that are about protecting those you love even when they're hard. I hope you all understand why I am taking the story in this direction and that you'll stick with me!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Dad! Thank God you picked up!"

"Emma? Is everything okay?"

"Not exactly"

"What happened?"

"Well Zoe ran away…"

"Again? Emma if this is too much for you guys…"

"No! No, we found her but we found out that a few days ago she made contact with Heidi"

"How?...but we have been looking for her for a month now! How did she find her?"

"She ended up finding someone else who knew Heidi and we found out that ever since that phone call that Zoe made that Heidi has been making her way down here…to Zoe"

"Emma that's dangerous! She could be leading Stult's men right to you guys! Where is Heidi? You guys need to keep Zoe far away from her!

"But Dad"

"Emma if someone has been following this girl and see's that she is connected to you guys then they are going to be able to put two and two together"

"But…Killian and Zoe are already on their way to go pick her up"

"I'm calling Killian. I love you Emma but I have to keep you guys safe" and with that David hung up. Emma was so frustrated, her dad hadn't even given her a chance to explain anything! She was going to have to decided if they were going to listen to her dad, or do what they felt was right.

XXXX

Killian and Emma rode in a somewhat comfortable silence minus the radio playing in the back ground. Killian was infuriated that Zoe had not only lied to them and snuck out but he was more upset that she put herself in danger. Over the last few weeks of taking care of Zoe he and Emma really had started to think of her as their daughter in every way and he was not just protective of her because it was his job, but because she was his daughter.

He really didn't want to scare her off and he knew that sharing that would do just that but he also wanted her to be able to understand. He was broken out of his own thoughts when Zoe spoke up

"I'm sorry" She said. It was barely above a whisper and Killian almost missed it

"What was that?" He asked not believing what he just heard

"I'm sorry…for all of this"

"I forgive you Zoe, but I need you to understand something"

"What is that?"

"Zoe…as mad as I am that lied to us and snuck out…I'm more upset that you put yourself in danger"

"Because you could have lost your job" She said staring at her lap. She hadn't really thought about the fact that they were getting paid to watch out for her and that they may loose that if she was hurt or something worse

"No, I wouldn't have cared all that much if I lost my job" Killian said. He waited for a moment for a reaction from Zoe, he really wanted this to sink in

"What?"

"Zoe…Emma and I are getting paid to take care of you, that part is true. But we would give up the paycheck if it meant that you would be safe"

"I don't understand what you're saying" Emma said looking at him inquisitively. He wasn't making any sense to her. Why would they be willing to give up a good paying job?

"Zoe…Emma and I…we don't look at you as our assignment…we see you as our daughter" He felt like all the breath was let out of him when he said it from the shear panic that was rushing in. He didn't know how she was going to react. Maybe he should have waited for Emma to be there. Maybe he shouldn't have said anything at all.

"Oh" That was all Zoe said. She wasn't sure how to respond

"We love you Zoe…and it's okay if you don't feel that way about us but…that's how we feel about you"

 _"Stay straight for 20 miles_ " Came the GPS followed by Killians phone starting to ring.

"David"

"Killian I need you to run around and take Zoe home now"

"Mate I can't do that"

"Killian if you care about the safety of you and Emma and Zoe you will turn around right now"

"David what are you talking about? This girl is in trouble"

"I know, that's why the Georgia State Cops are on their way to pick her up right now. You can't take her back with you because anyone who has been following her is going to put two and two together and all of this. All of the progress you guys have made and the relocation of Zoe will be all for nothing"

"David"

"Killian when I gave my blessing for you to marry Emma, and when I sent Zoe to live with you , it was because I knew that you would do everything in your power to keep them safe. By going and bringing this girl back to Florida, you are putting all of you in danger. I'm not trying to be a pain, but if it comes to it, I will call your superior and fill them in"

"David…you're starting to cross a line"

"Than don't make me do it Killian. Take Zoe home and don't let her out of your sight till we can determine that no one has caught on and followed the trail back to Zoe" David knew that he was really pushing it and that Killian wasn't taking well to his threats, but he also knew that his son-in-law wasn't going to back down without a fight.

"David do you realize what kind of position you're putting me in?"

"I do, and you know that I wouldn't be so adamant about his if it wasn't life or death" David said sounding as desperate as Killian had ever heard him. He knew that David was right but he also knew that he didn't want to have to tell Zoe what was about to happen.

"Killian, what's going on?" Zoe said becoming worried

"It's fine Zoe, just a change of plans is all" Killian replied trying to keep her calm. "Alright David, but you have to promise you'll stick to our deal"

"I promise we will do whatever we can to find her a good home" He said sounding relived.

"Thank you mate"

"Killian, be careful"

"I will" and with that Killian ended the phone call and pulled off to the side of the road

XXXX

"Mom! How can you side with him?" Emma said frustrated as she paced the living room.

"Emma what else are we supposed to do? This girl is going to lead these men right to you and Zoe! The whole point of this was that you all would be kept safe!"

"And what about Heidi? Who is supposed to keep her safe"

"You're father and I will deal with that when she gets here. We already sent the Georgia state cops to collect her and bring her back to us in Maine, after that we will find her a good home, I promise. We aren't going to let anything happen to any of you, but that is going to take us making some hard choices" Mary said in a voice that she saved just for Emma. It was the voice she used when she was trying to teach Emma and help her understand.

Emma knew that her mom was right, she had to think of she and Killian and Zoe first. As much as this effected Zoe, it would affect her even more bringing Heidi to Florida. "How do I tell Zoe?"

"You be honest with her and you tell her exactly how much you and Killian love her and eventually, someday she'll understand that you made the hardest decision you ever had to as parents. Choosing her safety above all else"

"I don't know if I can do that"

"We wouldn't have brought her to you if we thought that. You and Killian are being wonderful parents. She will understand, someday"

"I wish you and dad were here"

"Me too baby. Me too"

XXXX

"Killian? What are you doing? Why are you pulling over?" Zoe asked. She felt her heart rate start to quicken

"Zoe…"

"Killian, don't lie to me. What did David say?" Zoe asked bluntly. She already knew something as wrong and she quickly figured out that it was something to do with Heidi or herself, or, more likely, both.

"David felt it was best that you and Heidi not been seen together so the Georgia police are picking her up right now"

"What does that mean?"

"We're not sure yet. We just need to be sure that none of Stult's men followed her or have made the connection between the two of you" He said placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. He didn't know how to tell her the full truth about what was really going on.

"Killian…"

"Zoe, will you trust me? Trust me that I am only doing what is best for you?" Killian was shocked by the words that came out of his mouth. Maybe David was right, he could do this. Zoe stared at her would be father for a moment. So far all that Killian and Emma had done for her was to try and make her feel safe…

"Okay"

"Thank you Zoe" Killian said before leaning over and kissing her forehead "Let's go home"


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

 **Hello Everyone! So this last episode was so cute but I highly doubt that David would have backed down that easily to the idea of Emma going out and getting drink with his wife without him able to be there. I miss seeing David, I feel like he hasn't been on the show much.**

 **Enough of my banter. Another Chapter. As always I love to hear what you think :)**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Emma ended her phone call with her mom and immediately called Killian knowing that her father had probably already called him

"Hello Love, have your parents called you?"

"Yea, and from that greeting I can tell they called you too"

"Aye, Zoe and I are on our way back to the house"

"How is she taking it"

"She understands" Killian said smiling over at Zoe. He didn't want to say anything that would be upsetting

"So you haven't told her everything yet"

"…no"

"Killian…I feel awful. She has been through so much and now"

"It's all going to work out. Your parents are right, we have to protect everyone involved"

"I know…I know…So how long till you guys get back here?"

"We're about 30 minutes away. Do you want us to pick something up?" Killian asked, grateful for the change in topic.

"No, I'll go ahead and order some pizza so you and it should arrive about the same time"

"Alright love. I love you"

"I love you too. Stay Safe" and with that she ended the call

XXXX

Killian and Zoe rode in relative silence again as they headed back toward the house. He knew she was starting to put two and two together but he was really hoping they could give her all the details once they were home and he had Emma with him. He admired the way that she was able to deliver difficult news with such grace and poise that it put everyone in the room at ease.

"Killian?"

"Yes lass. I'm not going to get to see Heidi am I?" Zoe said ringing out her hands. She was starting to put two and two together but she had to have confirmation that her fears were legitimate.

"Not for right now. We know that someone saw her when she fount your place in Storybrooke ransacked and we can't guarantee that someone hasn't been following her since then trying to get to you"

"oh"

"I promise, if there is a way to get you both together, even if it's just for a short time, as long as it doesn't put anyone in harms way"

"Thank you"

"Of course love"

About twenty minutes later they pulled up to the house and Killian pulled into the garage. He didn't like having Zoe being out in front of the house or have people know if she was coming or going, especially with everything that just happened.

"Hey guys! Emma said coming over and giving Zoe a quick hug before letting her put her things down.

"I'm going to go put my things away in my room" Zoe said. Killian and Emma didn't mind, they wanted a moment to catch up.

"How did she take it? She knows that she won't be seeing Heidi for a while but I didn't go into detail. I don't think it's completely necessary, she's smart enough to figure it out. I think we just need to give her space and let her deal with it on her own. If she needs us, she'll come to us"

"Killian, we let her come to us last time and look what happened. I know you don't want to push her, but we can't have any more secrets"

"Alright, we also need to go over some new boundaries" Killian added thinking aback to her little stunt she pulled earlier that day.

"Agreed" Just then the doorbell rang. "Must be the pizza" She said giving him a quick peck and went to the front door.

Within 15 minutes they were all in the living room scarfing down pizza and bread sticks along with a couple of two liters but no one was really talking. Finally Emma knew they had to breach the topic they all wanted to avoid.

"So Zoe, we wanted to talk to you about everything that's happened today. We know it's been overwhelming….but we also want to let you know that we don't want anymore secrets between us"

"Okay" Zoe replied. She wasn't sure how to even respond

"Love, can you tell us how you found Heidi?"

Zoe took a deep breath. She knew that she was going to have to tell them that she wasn't spending as much time on her classes that she let on, even though she knew they probably had figured that out. "Well…after you took the phone I didn't have any way to reach her until I started my online classes"

"Zoe…we gave you that in trust"

"Love, why didn't you ask us to help you?"

"You guys said that Emma's parents would take care of it so I figured that was the end of the conversation. I hadn't heard anything and you guys didn't seem like you had so I thought I would figure it out on my own"

"How did you figure out where she was?" Emma asked. She was frustrated with Zoe but she also knew that she couldn't change what she did and it was more important to focus on the facts.

"I started reaching out to a few people that we knew. I would send them private messages under a fake name letting them know I was looking for Heidi and one of them had helped her out after our phone call. They told me that Heidi had crashed on their couch and had mentioned wanting to find me but that she was gone before they woke up the next morning"

"So then what happened after that love?"

"Another friend contact me after I reached out to them and they told me that they had found Heidi and she was staying with them. That's when Heidi and I were finally able to talk"

"Where was she at that point?" Killian asked trying to piece it all together

"She had just made it into Georgia. I hadn't found her until yesterday"

"Okay Zoe. Out of all the people that you've been talking to, how many of them know that you're here?" Emma asked. She was really scared of what the answer would be.

"Only Heidi. I swear. I had told her when we had our initial phone call and had sworn her to secrecy! Others have asked but I tell them that I can't tell them and I have cleared the history on the computer ever time so they can't track my internet activity. I know what I did was risky but I promise that I took every precaution possible!"

"Honey It's alright" Emma said coming over and putting her arm around her. Zoe leaned into her shoulder and began to sob. All of the emotions from the last 24 hours were starting to surface. After a few minutes Emma adjusted Zoe so that she could see her face "Sweetheart, Killian and I understand that you wanted to be able to help Heidi and we appreciate all of the steps you took to keep anyone from being able to figure out where we are. However, we wish that you would have asked us to help. We have the ability to find out a lot more without having to worry about your safety" She said moving a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Lass, our goal is to protect you, always. Like I said in the car, we don't see you as a person we have to protect for a paycheck. We see you as our daughter and threat or no threat, we want you to be safe" He said coming on her other side

"Zoe, we want to be your parents. We know it may take time for you, and that it totally okay, but whenever you're ready…we are too"

Zoe had soft tears running down her face as she looked between the two "I've never had a family before"

"We know lass, and that's why we want to take this at your own pace. Everything you're going through is not easy. It's going to take some time for you to be able to adjust"

"All we ask is that you allow us to help you and that you trust us to do what is in your best interest"

"I guess I can try…I've just never had anyone put me first before"

"Well get used to it" Emma said squeezing her shoulder

"Aye lass, we're not going anywhere"

"Now how about I get the ice cream out and we watch a movie"

"So I'm not in trouble?" Zoe asked looking between the pair. Emma and Killian shared a look for a moment. They had told her she was in trouble but they also had a better understanding of what happened. They knew they had to be careful with this as it was their first real chance to be parents.

"We understand that you were trying to help Heidi" Emma started

"But lass you really scared us. We aren't going to be able to trust you for a while"

"So I guess what we're trying to say is, we aren't letting you out of our sight for a while, but we also aren't going to give you a punishment per say"

"That seems fair" Zoe said "You guys are pretty good at this" This put a smile on everyone's face.

"Alright I'm getting the ice cream!" Emma said. Things were starting to finally fall into place.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

 **Happy Friday my friends! Here is our next chapter. This is a little Daddy Killian bonding. The next chapter will have Emma and Zoe bonding. As always let me know what you think and what you would like to see. I haven't decided what Emma and Zoe are going to do so let me know if you have an idea! :)**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The next day was Saturday so Killian and Emma had the day off and they had a few errands to run. Over the last few weeks they had had one of them stay home with Zoe while the other went out and then swap but today's list wasn't going to allow for that so they were going to have to take Zoe with them.

"Hey Zoe" Emma said lightly shaking her shoulder

"What?" Zoe said confused. She wasn't awake enough to comprehend what was going on

"Hey honey, I brought you a cup of coffee"

"mmmm Coffee" Zoe said reaching out and taking the cup. Emma helped her adjust herself so that way she could sit up and not spill on herself. "So what do I owe this to?"

"What do you mean?" Emma said moving to sit more comfortably on the bed

"I mean the coffee on a Saturday morning. This isn't normal" She said taking another sip. She was eyeing Emma because she figured this was going to mean either bad news or they were going to ask her to do something she didn't want to do. It was a classic move for any parent

"Can't I bring my daughter a cup of coffee on a Saturday morning?" Emma said mock offended

"Not unless there is a bribe attached" Zoe quipped back

"Fine, you caught me. We have a bunch of places we need to go today and in order to get all of it done…"

"You want me to come with you" Zoe finished for her "I'm guessing that after the events of the past day it's out of the question to ask to stay here alone?"

"OH yea! You're not going to be out of our sight for a while kid" Emma said getting up off the bed "But hey, at least I softened the blow with a cup of coffee right?"

"I'll give you that, doesn't mean it's nice to wake me up on a Saturday" Zoe jabbed back jokingly

"You'll live" Emma shouted back over her shoulder. Zoe leaned back and took another sip of her coffee. Today would be interesting

XXXX

A short time later Zoe emerged ready to go for the day. She was wearing a pair of skinny jeans with a pair of white converse with a long green short sleeve shirt and a jean jacket with a baseball cap.

"You look really cute Zoe!" Emma said as she saw her approach

"Thanks, I'm trying to remember that I'm supposed to be 14. But at the same time I can still be a fashionable 14 year old right?" She said looking down at herself

"Of course!" Emma said coming over and placing a hand on each arm. "You can be as stylish as you would like to be. You have a young enough face that people aren't going to question you. Besides, this is what most teenagers are wearing today anyway!"

"So what are we doing today?"

"Well I have a meeting at work this morning so you'll go with Killian to do some grocery shopping and then I'll pick you up back here and we'll get to go run a few other errands while Killian does a few things at the station."

"Sounds good"

"Are you lasses ready for the day?" Killian said coming up behind her as he immerged from their room.

"Yep! You guys will hit the grocery store and then we'll flip flop" Emma said bringing him up to speed

"Sounds good love" He said as he came up and placed a kiss on the side of her head. She returned it with one on his lips

"Come on guys" Zoe said as she went to the sink to rinse out her cereal bowl.

"What? You mean this?" Emma said kissing Killian again but a bit deeper

"Come on guys! I'm just starting to come around to the idea of you as my parents, don't ruin it!" Killian and Emma started to giggle

"Well I think it's impressive that we can still provide you with a few traumatic childhood memories at this stage in the game don't you?" Killian said wrapping his arm around Emma's waist

"Oh my gosh you guys are 'that couple'" Zoe said rolling her eyes "Alright Killian let's get out of here" She said heading toward the garage.

"Well I think we're getting this parenting thing down don't you?" Killian said giving her one final kiss

"As part of that parenting thing…Killian"

"Don't worry, she won't leave my sight. It's going to be fine. We're just finding our normal. I promise, we'll get there"

"Thank you"

"You're welcome. I better get out there before she decides to drive off" Killian said heading toward the garage

"Not funny" Emma yelled back. She didn't know why but she was feeling a bit of apprehension as she watched her husband and daughter leave for the store. She knew that Killian would protect her with his life but she also wasn't totally convinced that Zoe fully agreed to not pull another stunt like she did yesterday. She just really hoped that she was wrong.

XXXX

Killian pulled up to the store and he and Zoe got out and headed inside. "Wanna grab a cart love?"

"Sure…so what's on the list?"

"Great question…Looks like a few basic items and then some healthy crap. We'll add a few things where we need" he said with a wink

"Sounds like a plan. Do you wanna' go ahead and split the list and I can take half…"

"No, this is father daughter bonding time" He said putting a finger on her nose

"Kil…"

"Ah ah ha"

"Dad, come on"

"I'm serious" He said putting his arm around her shoulders "This is the perfect time to get to know each other better. Now, what's first"

They walked around the store together grabbing each item and throwing it into the cart along with a few extra pieces of junk food that Killian knew Emma probably wouldn't have approved of. They were almost at the end when one of the guys from the precinct came up to them

"Sargent"

"Dobbs, how's it going?"

"Just picking up a few things for the game, you comin'?"

"Ah not today. I have a few things I have to get done at the station and I'm also spending some quality time with my daughter. Zoe meet officer Dobbs" He said putting a secure arm around her. He knew these types of meetings were awkward for her.

"Nice to meet you young lady" he said extending a hand that Zoe reluctantly took. "Sarg, I didn't know you had a kid, especially one this old"

"We adopted Zoe, a letter went out to the whole precinct about this" Killian said feeling a bit annoyed at the officers prodding.

"Sorry Sarg, I must have missed it. Well congratulations"

"Thank you. Now we better finish up and get home to Emma but good to see you"

"You too Sarg" They waited for the officer to walk away before Killian addressed the situation.

"Sorry about that love"

"It's okay, you being the Sargent and this being a small town kind of makes these types of interactions inevitable"

"True, but your comfort is my number one goal. If someone ever does something or approaches you…"

"I'll let you know. It was fine. This is still new…for all of us"

"I know…but Dobbs is one who doesn't understand what is appropriate and what's not unfortunately."

"It's fine Dad…let's grab these last two things and then get home before the ice cream melts" and with that she started pushing the cart toward the next aisle. He wasn't sure if she was really okay or putting on an act but he was so proud of how she handled it. It was also nice to hear her call him dad, even though he knew it wasn't real. He had hope though that soon it would be.

XXXX

Emma went into the office and sat through her monthly meeting. It was the only thing about the job that she didn't like but realized was necessary. However, she spent the whole meeting thinking about Zoe and Killian and if they were safe. This whole search for Heidi and almost having their location outed had made her want to hold on to Zoe and Killian more.

As soon as the meeting was over she bolted out the room and immediately called Killian

"Hello Love, how'd you're meeting go?"

"It was the same old same old, how is shopping coming? Are you almost done?"

"We're actually loading the car…Zoe can you grab that…we're loading the car right now"

"Good. How is Zoe? Did she do okay?"

"She's fine love. I know you're worried but I promise, we're both fine"

"I'm sorry…I just need to relax…I don't know what's come over me"

"I understand love. I feel it to, but we are doing everything we can to make sure we're all safe and that's all we can do"

"I know…I know…Thank you Killian"

"You're welcome Swan. Now, we're going to head home and put these away so we'll see you at the house"

"Okay, I love you"

"I love you too"

XXXX

"Is everything okay?" Zoe asked as they got into the car

"Yea, Emma was just making sure we're good"

"What was she worried about?"

"She was just making sure nothing happened. With everything going on she just worries but I reassured her, I didn't let anything happen to you" He said pinching her cheek.

Zoe immediately swatted his hand away "Oh please! Stop it!" she said trying to not laugh "What did she think I was going to do? Wander off and get lost?"

"Among other things, yes. She just isn't wanting to be away from us just yet, but she is doing a great job of taking it all in stride"

"Well, alright. I mean, I'm not _really_ 14…I know how to take care of myself"

"Really? So running off and not telling us that you were in contact with a runaway minor was you taking care of yourself?"

"Hey, she's in good hands now and I was able to find her when police in two states couldn't so I think that deserves a little bit of credit!"

"You get no credit because you did it behind our backs and almost outed our location, you're lucky you ended up with people who were much more understanding than most adoptive parents would have been" He said giving her a look that let her know that within this playful banter was some seriousness.

"Which is also why you know I'm right" She said throwing her hip out and placing her hand on it. She wasn't going to let this one go.

"You are correct in that you were able to find her, however love, you were wrong in all other aspects. Now get in the car" Killian said effectively ending the conversation.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

 **Happy Once Day! I promise I'm not going to give any spoilers but that episode was SO intense! But the sneak peak for next week has me so excited! Warning of mentions of Abuse in this chapter but I took the suggestion of Emma and Zoe going shopping from multiple reviewers so I hope you all like it! Let me know what you want to see next and as always let me know what you think!**

* * *

Zoe was a little taken aback by Killian. She had never had someone who cared enough about her to be mad when she put herself in danger. Sure, she had had foster parents who got mad at her all the time but only if her actions made it so they got called to the school or the police showed up because a teacher saw bruising on her, never because they actually cared about her wellbeing.

They remained in a somewhat comfortable silence on their ride back to the house. Once Killian pulled into the garage they both got out and started unloading the car.

"There you guys are" Emma said coming into the garage "How was your shopping trip?" She said picking up a few bags.

"It was fine" Zoe replied

"I see you went off list" She said pulling out a box of pop tarts and giving Killian a look.

"What? You know you love pop tarts" She said with a wink

"And I told _you_ that I wanted us to start eating healthy" She quipped back looking through the other bags to find the other junk food she knew he bought.

"A little treat here and there never hurt anyone right Zo?" Killian said trying to get some help

"Oh yea…everything in moderation Emma!" She said as she slid past her and headed into the house.

"She has you wrapped around her finger" Emma said coming up to him and placing a gentle hand on his chest.

"That she does" He said covering her hand with his.

"Well I'm glad. I always knew if we had a daughter she would be a daddy's girl" She said before giving him a kiss.

"What can I say? I'm just too charming for my own good" He said pulling away for a moment before going right back to kissing her. This all just felt so right. They had always planned on having a family and, as unconventional as it was, it was theirs.

"So what are you and Zoe doing from here?" He said pulling back to catch his breath

"I figured we would go shopping. She still doesn't have a lot of clothes. Besides, it's a good mother daughter bonding experience."

"I agree. Good call Swan" he said pulling her closer to him "Although…I do wish we had some mommy daddy time" He said before starting to kiss her neck.

"Okay there pirate. We have a teenage girl inside who is not going to want to walk in on this" She said as he continued kissing her

"It'll just be another traumatic childhood memory" He replied without stopping

"GUYS!" They heard Zoe yell.

"Told you" Killian said pulling away from Emma to look at their now traumatized daughter

"Sorry Zoe" Emma said straitening herself out. Her face was slowly turning 10 different shades of red.

"I came out here to see if you guys needed help…apparently you need a weekend away" She said rolling her eyes and going back inside

"See…perfect parenting right there!" Killian said with a smirk

"That was terrible!" Emma said slapping his chest "Now let's get these groceries inside!"

"Hey Zoe…" Emma said coming in and trying to approach the situation

"No…don't want to talk about it" Zoe said taking the bags from her and busying herself putting the groceries away.

"Sorry…but to make it up to you I'm taking you shopping!" Zoe stopping for a moment and just stared at Emma. She had never had a parent who wanted to take her shopping for fun. "Unless you don't want to?" Emma said trying to back petal

"No….I mean…I'd love to" Zoe said trying to come up with the words.

"Good! Why don't we finish putting these groceries away and then we'll head out okay?" She said picking up the closest bag.

"Okay!" Zoe said following suit.

"Well you lasses enjoy your shopping. I'll be home once I'm done at the station" He said coming over and giving Emma a quick kissing before going over to Zoe and kissing her on the top of her head before heading out.

It wasn't long before Emma and Zoe were in the car on their way to the local mall. Part of Emma was getting more and more anxious as they approached the mall. It was such a wide open area that it would be heard to keep Zoe safe if someone were to try and come after them. Then again, they had done a good job of covering her tracks, she was sure they would be fine, she was just over thinking it.

"Emma…" Zoe said breaking her out of her own head "Are you okay?"

"Yea…I'm fine! Why?"

"You just passed what I can only assume is the mall" Zoe said pointing in the rear view mirror. Emma looked back and realized she was right.

"Woops! I guess I just got lost in my own thoughts. Not a big deal, we'll just turn around" She said trying to cover her mistake.

"Emma…"

"No, really. I'm fine." She said looking over and placing a gentle hand on her leg. Zoe wasn't quite sure what was going on but she knew that Emma was not okay. She figured it probably had to do with her worrying that someone was still going to come after her. She knew Emma wouldn't talk about it so she simply responded "Okay"

They eventually found a parking spot in the ramp and headed inside. Emma was doing her best to relax and just enjoy her time with Zoe. "So, what kind of stores did you used to shop at?"

"Well…probably none of these…I never really got new clothes" Zoe said hesitantly. She was kind of embarrassed that she had to tell that to Emma, but she didn't really have a choice.

"Well we're going to change that!" Emma said putting her arm around her. Let's start at one of my favorites, Maurices" From there they were off. Emma made Zoe promise not to look at the price tags and just pick up the things that she liked.

"What about this?" Emma said holding up a pineapple printed shirt with lace around the bottom.

"Um…."

"Yea…not a great pick"

"But I did find this" Zoe said holding up a floral flowing cardigan

"Love it! You could pair it with this lacy tank top!" Emma said holding up a simple white shirt.

"Okay!"

"Alright let's go try these on" Emma said ushering Zoe to the fitting rooms. By the end of the day their arms were filled with bags from a few different stores and Zoe had found plenty of age appropriate outfits along with a few dressier items for special occasions.

They finally made it to the car and were beginning to load their bags when they heard someone calling out from behind them "Elizabeth!"

Both Zoe and Emma turned around with Emma immediately pushing Zoe behind her as a young man approached them running up and looking out of breath.

"Excuse me? What do you think you're doing?" Emma said putting her hand out to put more space between the young man and her daughter

"Elizabeth is that you?" The young man said trying to see around the woman. Zoe then stepped to the side to see who he was and her jaw dropped to the ground

"I don't know who Elizabeth is but this is my daughter Zoe. You need to walk away now" Emma said harshly trying to make the young man leave.

"Mom…"

"Zoe, not now. Young man my husband is the police Sargent and I won't hesitate to have you arrested for harassment. Now I suggest you walk away right now" Emma said in a threatening voice that actually made Zoe nervous.

"I'm sorry mam…I'll…I'll go" and with that the young man quickly took off.

"Zoe get in the car now!" Emma said grabbing all the bags and shoving them in the trunk before escorting Zoe to the passenger seat. Emma then got into the drivers seat and took off.

"Mom, he wasn't trying to hurt me!" Zoe exclaimed feeling frustrated that Emma wouldn't listen to her

"Zoe who in the heck was that?"

"He was one of my former foster brothers! He always protected me and took care of me! I wanted to talk to him!"

"Zoe you know you can't do that! We can't let anyone know that you're here, especially someone from your past! I'm sorry, but I have to take care of you first" She said as she started to slow down after she realized she was speeding. Her heart had been racing a million miles a minute.

"Emma, he wouldn't have told anyone! We could have brought him back to the house…"

"Absolutely Not!"

"HE WOULD HAVE UNDERSTOOD!"

"ZOE! Stop it!" She then pulled over and took a deep breath. Them yelling at each other was not going to help either of them. After a minute Emma turned sideways so she could face her daughter and she took her hands into hers. "Zoe…I know that seeing someone who is important to you, you would want to catch and find out how they are. That is totally understandable. But in your situation, it just isn't safe, for you or them. If someone finds out that he knows who you are or where you are, someone may try and come after him. You wouldn't want that would you?"

Zoe just shook her head as she did all she could to hold back her tears "Zoe I love you so much. I wish I could let you talk to him. But my priority is your safety. Having someone over to our home who knows who you really are is putting your life in danger and I won't do that" Emma said wiping away the single tear that treaded down Zoe's cheek.

"I'm sorry" Zoe managed to squeak out. Emma immediately leaned across the middle console and took Zoe into her arms. "I forgive you honey. I Do. I know you didn't mean anything by it. I'm sorry I yelled" They stayed like that for a few minutes until Zoe had stopped crying.

"Alright. How about we go and grab dinner for all of us?"

"Sounds good"

"Alright, why don't you call your dad and ask what he wants" Emma said throwing the car back into gear and merging back into traffic. They had just crossed their first hurdle…they were going to be okay.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

 **Hello my lovely readers! HAPPY ONCE DAY! I'm kind of mad about this episode but also kind a see why they did what they did (I won't spoil it) but I also loved the ending. Also, we FINALLY got some good daddy charming moments! I'm nervous for what the rest of the season holds. Until than, here is another chapter.**

 **Please let me know what you would like to see and I will always try to include it!**

 **ENJOY!**

* * *

Zoe reached into Emma's purse and pulled out her phone. Under the circumstances she wasn't allowed to have one of her own.

"Hello Love"

"Hey Killian, it's Zoe"

"Well if it isn't my other love. Did you and Emma have fun shopping"

His remark made Zoe blush, She still wasn't fully used to the pet names "Yea, we did. Um, we're going to pick up dinner, did you have any requests?"

"Well Emma knows what I like but I guess I'll just take a burger from wherever you two decide to stop"

"Okay, anything else?"

"Why don't you grab a large fry and a couple of milkshakes as well" He added knowing that Emma wouldn't want him ordering that.

"Okay. We'll be home soon than" Zoe said

"Alright lass, I'll probably be getting home around the same time as you lot"

"Sounds good…bye" and with that she hung up the phone.

"So what did Killian order or do I even want to know?" Emma said as soon as she hung up

"Well, He wants a burger"

"Typical, but I know that's not all he wants" She said giving Zoe a small smile. She was realizing now that he was truly out to spoil her plan to eat healthy.

"Yea…he ordered a large fry and a couple of milkshakes for us to share"

"That's so Killian. I swear, if I wasn't around he would weigh 300 pounds!" She laughed. Zoe couldn't hold back her own laughter at this point. The idea of Killian as a 300 pound man was quite the picture. Maybe Emma was right to try and curve his eating habits a bit, even if he did try to fight her at every turn.

"That would be…interesting" Zoe added through her own laughter.

"Alright. Let's stop by the diner and grab that and than we'll head home. Did he mention when he would be there?"

"Yea, he said he would be there around the same time as us"

"Perfect! We can all just relax and play a game" Emma said. She really wanted to try and make up for her over reaction in the parking garage at the mall. She knew that they were probably going to have to talk about it with Killian, but until than, she was going to try and act like they were a normal Mother and Daughter.

XXXX

Killian hung up the phone after talking with Zoe. He thought it was so cute the way that she still wasn't fully sure how to act around him and that she always ended up trying to abruptly end a conversation or interaction when she didn't know what to do. There was something about it that he knew he would miss when she did eventually get comfortable.

"Sargent" Came one of his officers breaking his train of thought.

"Yea?"

"This just came in. Apparently there has been some mob activity in neighboring states and all signs point to it coming our way next" His officer explained handing him the report. Killian looked it over and saw the string of robberies and shootings that were all linked to the mob in one way or another. His heart fell into his stomach. He really hoped that this didn't mean that they were coming for Zoe.

"Thanks Nelson. I'll get in contact with these departments and see what information we may need to combat this. Thanks you" He said dismissing the officer. He than shut his office door and called David.

"Killian, I figured you would be calling. I just got the same memo"

"How worried should we be?"

"Honestly? I'm not quite sure yet. However it wouldn't be a good idea to let Zoe be out and about or on her own."

"Aye, after the sister incident, we don't have any plans of doing that."

"I know that gave you guys a scare but I think you handled it really well. I know that couldn't have been easy. By the way, how you are you both feeling about everything?"

"Now that the sister issue has passed I think we're finally catching our stride. I don't know how Zoe feels but Emma and I already think of her as our daughter"

"That's good to hear. Say, Mary and I were thinking about coming down for a visit. We want to get to know Zoe a bit more and also prep her for the upcoming trial"

"We'd love to have you mate. Speaking of the trial, do we have a date for that?"

"Not quite yet. His arraignment isn't for another two weeks"

"You guys are that behind?"

"Unfortunately yes but I'll let you know if we can move that up"

"Thanks mate. Well I have to head out and meet the girls at home for dinner but I'll let them know you said hi"

"Thanks Killian, I'll get back to you on when we can come down"

"Sounds good. Talk to you later"

XXXX

Emma and Elizabeth pulled into the small diner and went in to order their food and were quickly out the door with the bags and cups in hand. They pulled into their drive way at the same time as Killian.

"Well that was good timing. How was work?" Emma said as Killian came around to her side of the car.

"It was fine, nothing much to report. Do you lovelies need help carrying things in?"

"I think we have the food if you want to grab the clothes" Emma said giving him a quick peck

"Oh that's right, how did you…I guess you did really well" He said as he opened the trunk and saw the mirage of different bags

"Sorry…I don't Emma I didn't need that much" Zoe said coming around the back of the car. She was worried that he was mad that they had bought too much.

"Oh no love" He quickly countered putting a hand on her shoulder "I'm so happy you were able to find a lot of things that you liked! I'm always just amazed at the large variety of woman's clothing" He joked "Seriously, I will buy you as many clothes as you want if it makes you happy" He said sealing in his approval.

"Well I think these will be enough for quite a while" Zoe said feeling a bit relived.

"Well as long as your happy. Now lets get inside he said grabbing the last bag and hanging it off his wrist before shutting the trunk.

The three of them enjoyed what could only be described as a normal family evening. They ate and shared and joked while playing the game of life. Eventually they all realized their own exhaustion and headed to bed.

"Love, I need to tell you something" Killian said as he slid into bed

"What?" Emma said turning around with her toothbrush in her mouth still

"Something came in at work. There have been a series of crimes that have been credited to the mob…the same group that is after Zoe"

Emma stopped brushing her teeth and quickly spit out the foam into the sink "Killian what are you saying?"

"I'm not saying anything. We have no idea if this is linked to Zoe or not but, it's something we should be aware of"

"Are they coming for her?"

"I don't know. I just wanted to keep you informed because we agreed that we would be honest with each other. I did call your dad and he said that we shouldn't let up on our watch but that we don't need to be to worried"

"Well someone around here knows who she is" Emma said sitting down on the bed

"What?" Killian said sitting up in the bed and looking her in the eye

"When we went to the mall a young man came up calling her Elizabeth. I told him he needed to back off and that we didn't know any Elizabeth. He started trying to talk to Zoe and I told him that you were the sarget and I would get him charged with harassment and that's when he finally left"

"Did Zoe know him?"

"Yea, it's one of her foster brothers. She was pretty upset that I wouldn't let her talk to him and we ended up shouting at each other."

"Emma" Killian said reaching out and placing his hand on hers

"It's okay. As soon as we started yelling I stopped and we talked it out and she understands but, it's those kind of things that make me paranoid."

"I know, I know" he said wrapping her into his arms and gently stoking her hair. He hated seeing Emma this worried about Zoe. "She is going to be safe. I promise. We are not going to let anything happen to her, but Emma" He paused as he took her face into his hands. "I need you to believe that. If you are always worried and thinking about the what if's of our situation, you are never going to be able to just enjoy being with Zoe, and she needs that as much as she neds our protection"

"What did I do to deserve you?"

"It's I who don't deserve you love"

"You always know what to say to help me see things straight. I hadn't really thought about how my anxiety was making Zoe feel"

"I know love, because you wouldn't never do anything to hurt her in any way" He said before kissing her forehead.

"I really do love her. I know we haven't been a family long, but she has made her way into my heart in a way I can't describe"

"I know, I feel the same way. We're going to be just fine" he said as they finally laid down with Emma's head on his chest "Speaking of family, your dad said he and your mom would like to come for a visit"

"Really? I guess that would be nice"

"He said they want to get to know Zoe but they also want to help prep her for the trial"

"I totally forgot about that. I hope she's going to be okay with all of that"

"That's why they want to come love. We're going to make sure she is as comfortable as possible" He than kissed the top of her head "Now let's get some sleep, it's been a long day" and with that he reached over and turned off the light.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

 **Hello my lovely readers! I hope you are all having a fantastic week! If you haven't seen the sneak peak for this Sunday's episode I highly encourage you go to youtube right now and watch it. It makes me SO Excited for the lead up to the musical episode May 7!**

 **Well here is another chapter. It's a bunch of Fluff but I think after all that they have been through so far we needed to see them just being a family. The next chapter we will have to focus on the reality of things but for now, they get to be a family. As always please let me know what you think and please let men now what you want to see!**

 **Happy Reading!**

* * *

Emma rushed around the housing trying to clean everything and make sure that the house was ready for her parents to come. It was strange but Emma had this deep need to impress her parents. Today that included making sure that she had a clean house when they arrived. She never admitted it, but ever since Zoe had come to live with them, she was afraid that they would think that she was a bad mom and that she couldn't handle it.

"Mom?" Zoe said dragging out the word. She was a bit confused at Emma's manic state of cleaning. The word stopped Emma in her tracks. Zoe had just recently started calling them Mom and Dad around the house and she absolutely loved it but was still getting used to hearing it.

"Yea Honey?"

"What's going on? Why are you rushing around cleaning?" Zoe had never seen Emma be so worried about what the house look liked.

"Oh, didn't Killian tell you? My parents are coming into town"

"Really? Why?"

"Well, they want to get to know you better"

"And?"

"What do you mean and?" Emma said stopping her cleaning spree to walk over to Zoe

"And what else? They aren't just coming here because they want to get to know me. I mean, I'm sure that's part of it but there has to be more of a reason"

"Zoe…"

"Emma…it's okay. If there is more than one reason they are coming I understand. Our situation isn't exactly normal" Zoe said placing a gentle hand on her mothers arm.

"Well, they are coming to prep you for the trail"

"Oh" Zoe said taking a step back from Emma. She was expecting there to be something in relation to the whole situation, but not something where she was going to have to talk about it.

"We don't have to do it right away. I know you don't know them very well and we can have some time for you to feel comfortable before we talk about anything" Emma said coming up to her and placing a hand on both arms. She hated that Zoe was starting to retreat into herself at the mention of the trail. She wished with everything in her that she could just tell her that she didn't have to testify and make this all go away.

"it's okay…I mean…it's why I'm here right? To make sure that I'm safe from being kept from testifying"

"That is part of it, yes. But ultimately it's to make sure that you're safe period." Emma said taking Zoe's face into her hands and placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Now why don't you grab a snack and we'll relax and watch a movie before they get here okay?" Zoe nodded and headed to the kitchen while Emma walked around and collected the cleaning supplies to put back in the closet.

XXXX

Killian was finishing up things at the station. Overall the day had been pretty quiet which was great for Killian because he was able to get caught up on some paperwork that had piled up since Zoe had come to live with them. He had been trying to spend as much time home with her and Emma as he could in order to make sure that Zoe felt safe and they were able to build their family bond.

"Hey Sarg"

"Yes Anthony? What can I help you with?"

"This just came in" the officer said handing Killian the piece of paper

"Thank you Anthony." He said taking it from the young man. His face dropped at the heading on the announcement. The date had been set for the trail in which Zoe was going to have to testify and it was only a week away.

"Everything okay Sarg?"

"Do you have children Anthony?"

"I do, a little boy who is about to turn 5"

"Thank you know when you're kids have to face something difficult, you wish you could do it instead"

"Oh yea, but it makes them stronger in the long run right?" Anthony said with a smile. He than noticed that Killian wasn't smiling. "Sarg, I don't know what's going on with your daughter, but I'm sure she'll be okay. She has a great dad to take care of her"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Anthony. I hope you're right"

"I am. Have a good weekend"

"You as well Anthony" he said briefly looking up from the piece of paper to big the officer farewell. _I guess it's a good thing Mary and David are coming this weekend_ he thought. He knew she was going to need as much prep as they could possibly provide for her. He was wondering if David and Mary even knew about this yet. He quickly stuck the paper in his bag and decided that he would head home ahead of his in-laws arrival and enjoy some down time with his girls before things got serious.

XXXX

Zoe grabbed some tortilla chips and salsa before coming over and putting them on the coffee table.

"What movie you wanna watch?" Emma asked trying to lighten the mood

"Um…how about she's the man? I know it's older but it's always been one of my favorites"

"Mine to!" Emma said elated at her daughters choice. She was always amazed at the ways that they were so alike. Even though they weren't related by blood, Emma was starting to see parts of herself and Killian in Zoe that she attributed to her belief that Zoe was always meant to be their daughter.

"Perfect! I'll put it in"

"Good choice of snack too!" Emma said as she put a cup into her mouth. "Now come sit next to your mother" She said holding out her arm for Zoe. Zoe obliged and came over to sit next to Emma who wrapped her arm around her daughter and pulled her in closer. She hated that she had had to tell Zoe about the logistical reason for her parents visit and wanted to try and help her feel at ease before they arrived.

Zoe laid her head on her mom's shoulder as she allowed her to hold her while the movie started. She had always dreamed of something like this growing up. No one had ever cared about her enough to hold her and actually take care of her. It was all so new, but she was desperately trying to accept it and let them in.

About half way through the movie the heard the door to the garage open and both women looked up to see Killian come in and place his bag on the table "Hello loves, how was your day?" He said coming over and placing a kiss on top of each of their heads.

"Fine, how about you?" Emma asked looking at him with a questioning look.

"It was good. I just wanted to come over and spend some time with my girls" He said giving her a look that let her know that he would tell her later.

"Good, now come over here and watch the movie with us" Emma said sitting up for Killian to sneak in behind her on the couch

"No making out behind me got it?" Zoe said sitting up and pointing an accusatory finger at her parents.

"Oh, you mean like this?" Emma said turning and kissing Killian

"Guys!"

"Here" Killian said placing his hand over her eyes and kissing Emma again

"I still know what you're doing and it's still gross" Zoe complained. She went to get up off the couch when Emma grabbed her wrist and pulled her back down before wrapping her arms around her daughter

"You can't walk out on family time!" Emma said placing little kisses all over Zoe's face while Killian reached around and started to tickle her

"STOP IT! STOP IT!" Zoe said through her giggles.

Finally they stopped and let Zoe catch her breath "You two are terrible!" Zoe said with a smirk. She actually loved how comfortable that they had all become over the last few weeks. Sure there had a been a few bumps in the road but they had really shown her that they loved her no matter what.

"Alright you two, we better straighten this place up" Emma said getting up off the couch and grabbing the chips and salsa.

"Mom, you already cleaned the whole house. Are your parents really going to be upset if the place doesn't shine like the top of the Chrysler building?"

"Alright little orphan Annie…fine..you're right. I'm just nervous" Emma admitted looking from her daughter to her husband

"Why ever for love?"

"Well…" She didn't really want to tell Zoe her fears of what her parents would think of her as a mother

"Mom, you're doing a great job, and I haven't made it easy for you or dad. But if they question anything I promise I can set their concerns aside" Zoe said looking between her parents. She really loved that she was trying out calling them mom and dad, it just felt…right.

"Thank you Zoe" Emma said with tears in her eyes "I just don't want them to be disappointed is all"

"Our daughters right, we have done our best and she's still breathing so we did something right" Killian joked as he come up and hugged Emma. He had known her fears and knew that it mean so much to her to hear Zoe say that she was a good mother.

"Alright you two, what do we do than till they get here?" She said wiping away a few stray tears

"We could play life?" Zoe offered

"Life it is!" Killian said coming over and laying a kiss on top of Zoe's head. He than was off to get the game. He knew that no matter what, his little family was going to be okay.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

 **Hello Readers! I hope you are all having a great start to your week this last week and the next couple of weeks are crazy busy for me and I have a super weird schedule but I wanted to be able to get you an update. David and Mary Margret have come to visit and we'll see how it goes.**

 **Please let me know what you want to see!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The little family was caught off guard when they heard the knock at the door in the middle of their game. Killian immediately got up while Emma placed herself between Zoe and the door. They were all relieved when it was Mary and David.

"Oh, hello. Didn't realize you would be here so soon" Killian said letting them in

"Well we made pretty good time" David said carrying in their bags

"Yes, only because your father wouldn't stop to let me use the restroom. I'll be right back" Mary said making a b-line for the bathroom.

"Dad!" Emma scolded

"What? I told her to stop drinking those Arnold Palmer's! She would have had me stopping every two hours!" He defended himself

"Mate I don't' think you're going to win this one, might as well give up now" Killian said placing a hand on his father-in-law's shoulder before picking up one of the suitcases to take to the guest bedroom. David simply rolled his eyes before making his way over to Emma and taking her head in his hands and placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"Hello sweetheart. How are you?"

"Hi daddy. I'm good" Emma said with a sweet smile at her dad. She always thought it was funny how her dad always knew how to make her feel special.

"And you, young lady" He said stepping past Emma and over to Zoe "It's great to see you again" He said giving her hand a small squeeze. He wasn't sure what kind of affection his now granddaughter would be comfortable with so he decided touching her hand would be okay.

"You to" Zoe said moving a small piece of hair behind her ear. She really wasn't sure how she was supposed to act around Emma's parents. She had only just figured out how to act around Emma and Killian.

"Hey dad, why don't you come into the kitchen with me and help me pick what to order from the pizza place" Emma said pulling him toward the kitchen. She could see Zoe beginning to close up and she wanted to try and give her a minute to collect herself. David caught on and willingly followed Emma into the kitchen while Killian took up the seat next to Zoe.

"You okay love?"

"Yea" Zoe answered quickly while throwing a plastered smile at him

"Lass, I can tell this is all uncomfortable for you and that's okay" He said placing a gentle hand on top of hers.

"I don't want Emma to be mad at me" Zoe quietly whispered

"Why would she be mad?"

"Because I don't know how to be around her parents. I just figured out how to be with you two" She said wringing out her hands

"Zoe…Zoe look at me" Killian said using his finger to lift Zoe's chin to look at him "We are never going to be mad at you for not feeling comfortable around someone, even David and Mary. You have been through a lot and no one can blame you for being cautious." He finished by moving a small piece of her hair behind her ear.

"But aren't they technically my grandparents? Aren't kids supposed to like their grandparents?" Zoe said still feeling bad

"Not exactly. And your situation is very different than a normal teenager. You can cut yourself a break now and again lass" he said with a smile. Zoe smiled back. She was still not sure about all of it but she felt better knowing that she had her dad to back her up.

"Now, why don't we go in the kitchen before they order some of that nasty pineapple and ham pizza" Killian said holding his hand out to his daughter.

"That is the worst! We better hurry" she said letting him pull her up and wrap his around her. He would always do what he could to keep her smile on her face.

XXXX

"Dad…I'm sorry" Emma said as soon as they were out of ear shot.

"Emma, you have no need to be sorry. I know that Zoe is probably having an internal freakout right about now. I never expected her to feel comfortable around me and your mother"

"She really is doing well" Emma said with a half smile. She wanted her dad to be proud of her for how far Zoe had come. This wasn't exactly giving off the impression she had hoped.

"Emma, I know that you and Killian have been doing a great job with Zoe. This isn't easy for any of you. I'm actually really impressed. You handled her discomfort like a pro and did what any mother would do, you put your daughter first" He said placing his hand on the side of her face. She leaned into it let a gentle smile cross her face. There was something about her dad's touch that brought her utter peace, like everything was going to be okay.

"Thanks Daddy"

"Anything for you princess. Now, we better start actually picking the pizza before they come in here and squash our craving for Hawaiian pizza!"

"Yes! Killian and Zoe _Hate_ Hawaiian pizza so I never get to have it!"

"Because fruit doesn't belong on pizza" Killian said coming up behind Emma and wrapping his arm around her waist"

"Says the man who dips his pickles in orange juice" She shot back

"Both of you have disgusting food habits" Zoe jumped in rolling her eyes at their mushy back and forth"

"I agree" Came a voice from behind them. They all turned to see Mary who had finished going to the bathroom and changing into something a bit more comfortable "Now, why don't we see what we can do to make everyone happy?" She said holding her hand out for the menu.

XXXX

Mary Margret always prided herself on being a good negotiator. She found a way to get everyone what they wanted. When they opened the boxes you would have thought someone decided to get artistic. They got two large pizza's with a third of each pizza being something different.

They all got a plate and loaded it up with their favorites before making their way to the living room.

"Alright you two, this is what we are doing from now on" Emma said picking up her pizza and using it to point from Killian to Zoe. She wasn't going to have to live without her Hawaiian pizza any longer.

"Whatever you say love"

"Yea mom, whatever you say" Zoe said with a hint of sarcasm. She then quickly froze when she realized she called Emma mom in front of her parents. Emma immediately saw the reaction and immediately gave Zoe a wink to let her know it was okay.

"I have taught you well my daughter" Emma said "You're sarcasm is coming along nicely"

"Oh boy, if you're teaching Zoe your sarcasm we are all in trouble" Mary said

"What's that supposed to mean?" Emma asked a bit shocked

"Emma you are the queen of sarcasm and obviously Zoe is a quick learn. She's going to surpass you in no time" Mary laughed.

"Well of course!" Emma said giving Zoe another look. She really wanted her to know that she was apart of this family.

"So Zoe, how have things been here?" David cut in.

"Um…good. Emma and Killian have been really good to me." She said shyly picking at her pizza

"Good, if they ever aren't you just call me" He said giving Killian and Emma a side glace "I'll buy you a pony" He said in a whisper with his hand to the side of his mouth to act like he was keeping her parents from hearing

"Hey! You never bought me a Pony!" Emma said exasperated

"I'm not your grandfather either" He said with a smirk. Zoe couldn't help but laugh. Her mom looked like a teenager with the pout on her face. She also pleasantly surprised at how David was trying to act like a grandfather already. Maybe she could get close to him and Mary like she had Emma and Killian.

The banter continued over dinner but Emma and Killian were waiting for the other shoe to drop and they were worried about how Zoe would take it. They just wished that they could keep up the happy family moment forever.

Soon everyone was starting to get tired and Emma and Killian suggested that everyone head to bed and they could pick up in the morning.

XXXX

David had always been an early riser, he figured it was from growing up on a farm. He walked out of he and Mary's room and into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee before everyone got up. He was looking around in the cupboards for the coffee filters when he heard another door open. He figured it was Mary as she had started getting up early as well. He turned around and was shocked to see a small figure wearing a black zip up hoodie with the hood pulled down so you couldn't see their face and they were walking toward the front door after having punched something into the alarm keypad.

"Ahem" He cleared his throat. Zoe immediately stopped in her tracks. Emma and Killian never got up early, she figured her grandparents wouldn't either.

"Where do you think you're going?" He said stepping closer to her

"I was just going for a run" She lied but kept her back to him

"In jeans?" He asked sarcastically. He then put a gentle hand on her shoulder and turned her around before putting a finger under her chin and forcing her to look at him "Wanna tell me what's really going on?"

Zoe let her head fall once David removed his finger and started ringing out her hands. "Do I have to?" she asked in a small voice. She felt horrible that she had been caught sneaking out but even worse that she got caught by David, she really hope he didn't think less of Emma because of this incident.

"It would definitely be in your best interest, but no, you don't have to tell me he said standing there with his arms folded across his chest. "How did you know what to punch into the key pad? I know Emma and Killian change the code every day" He figured asking questions would get him further than trying to get her to come out with it.

"I just know" She said a bit more snarky than she planned. David let out a sigh before putting am arm around his granddaughter and leading her over to the couch.

"Zoe, I can't imagine how hard all of this must be for you. I know you have been on your own for a long time and you're probably not used to having someone to look out for you"

"Emma and Killian really are doing a great job. Please don't be mad at them. I'm just not good at being a part of a family" Zoe said hoping that David wouldn't get upset with Emma or worse, take her away and put her with a different couple.

"I'm not mad at Emma, I promise. I'm also not mad at you. All I want for you Zoe is for you to feel safe and loved. But part of your safety is that you are always accompanied by someone, not sneaking off on your own" He said with a pointed look

"I know" she said feeling his gaze on her. She just kept her head down and started picking at her nails.

"So how long have you been doing this? Sneaking out?" He said leaning back onto the couch to try and make Zoe feel more relaxed. She stayed hunched over but did take a minute to look back at him to see he had moved.

"This is my first time" She lied

"Really? Seems like you were pretty relaxed if this was your first time" He said a bit sarcastically

"It may have been my first time sneaking out here but, I've snuck out of other places" She defended herself

"That's fair. So how did you know the code? That only gets sent to Emma and Killian and it's always different"

"What's always different mate?" Killian said coming into the living room with a puzzled look on his face as to why David was sitting next to Zoe in his pajamas when she was already dressed for the day.

"The daily code on your security system"

"Aye, it is. Why?" He said feeling even more confused why David would be talking about their alarm system when it hit him.

"How'd you do it?" He asked

"What are you talking about Dad?" Zoe said trying to play innocent

"How did you get the daily code?" He said a bit more strict but not unkind

"I didn't" Zoe was trying really hard to keep up her innocents

"Killian I think you should probably call your security company and find out what number get the texts and make sure it's only you guys, I have a feeling your daughter is taking after her mother and somehow found a way to get her number added as well." He said giving Zoe another pointed look

"So this is the only time you have snuck out?" he pressed

"The first time who snuck out?" Came Emma's voice. She had also woken up and had made her way into the living room. "Zoe? What are you doing in jeans?"

"Looks like our daughter figured out a way to get the daily code and was attempting to sneak out. Gramps over here happen to be up and caught her" Killian said trying to catch her up quickly

"Nice job kid, but no way you're getting away with this" Emma said giving her a look. She always took a straight to the point approach when she confronted her daughter

"Mom"

"Zoe" She sent back

"I'm sorry…I won't do it again"

"Good, we can talk about your punishment later, let's make some breakfast" Emma said coming over and taking Zoe by the hand and pulling her into herself and placing a kiss on the top of her head as she led her into the kitchen. She wasn't going to treat this lightly but she also knew that today was already going to be tough on her daughter.

XXXX

"Thanks for catching her mate."

"Not a problem. She really is a good kid, I'm sure this is still just a lot for her"

"She really is. This is the first time…" David gave him a look that said _really_ "Okay, the first time in a while that we knew she was sneaking out"

"Don't beat yourself up Killian. You and Emma are doing a great job. Even Zoe said so. She was worried I'd be mad at you"

"Really?" Killian said. He felt his heart swell that Zoe felt any kind of affection for them, even if it was just not wanting David mad at them for her actions

"Yea, she said you guys are doing a great job. I agree. She has come a long way in these last few weeks"

"For now" Killian said rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"What do you mean by that?" David asked concerned and sitting up a bit straighter

"After today when we talk about the trail…I just hope it doesn't set all this back for us" He hadn't voiced his concerns like this before but after this stunt, he was worried that bringing up the trial and making her talk about it would blow up in their face.

David walked over and put a reassuring hand on his son-in-law's shoulder. "Don't doubt yourself Killian. Zoe knows she can count on you two. She may not utilize your strength and your love the way she should, but I can tell that she knows it's there. This isn't going to be easy for anyone but if anyone can get her through this, it's you two"

"Thanks mate"

"You're welcome. Now, let's go help Emma before she and Zoe burn down the kitchen"


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

 **Hello readers and happy almost weekend! I have another crazy week next week so I don't know when I'll have time to write so here is another update! As always, please let me know what you think of the chapter as well as what you want to see. Sorry that this chapter is shorter than usual but my last chapter was must longer so they balance out ;)**

 **Also, if you haven't ready Emma and Ella by Charming88 you need to go read her story!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Alright kid, did you grab the eggs?" Emma asked reading the instructions off the side of the pancake mix box

"Yep, and here is the milk" she said as she set the two ingredients

"Good catch. Have you made these before?"

"Oh yea! I learned to make my own food a long time ago" Zoe said nonshilantly. She wasn't ready to delv into her past. The truth was most foster parents that she had had never bothered to make a meal so she had to learn how to make the basics in order to keep from starving.

"Well then maybe you can teach me how to cook because I'm really not good at it" Emma said smiling at Zoe

"Deal! I actually like cooking" Zoe said cracking the eggs into the bowl with the powdered mix

"Lass you have no idea how happy that makes me" Killian said coming in and placing a kiss on the top of her head

"I hate to break it to you Zoe but unfortunately, my daughter cannot cook to safe her life" David added with a wink

"HEY! I can do a few things!" Emma faught back. She didn't mind admitting her flaws to Zoe but she didn't like getting called out, especially by her dad.

"It's okay Mom, Dad and I will make sure that the stove is turned off before we all go to bed" Zoe added with a sly smile.

"That's it, none of you are getting pancakes" Emma said pointing the spatula at them which sent the whole group into giggles. They needed a light moment after the conversation about Zoe sneaking out. Soon Snow joined them and helped Emma and Zoe finish up making some bacon and eggs to go with the pancakes while the men set the table.

"Well loves, you've done a great job" Killian said as he shoved anther bite of pancake in his mouth

"Agreed, and nothing is burnt" David added with a wink at his daughter

"You are on thin ice there pop's" Emma said giving him a death glare.

"It's okay mom, I believe in you!" Zoe said

"Oh really? You are a little flip flopper" Emma said with a side glance at her daughter

"It's called survival" Snow said wrapping an arm around her granddaughter

"Yea! What she said" Zoe said with a giggle. She really loved that they were starting to feel like a family. She had been nervous about them coming but now, she was sad at the thought of them leaving.

"So after we clan this up we're gonna' need to get down to business" David said. He had always taken the 'rip the band-aid off' approach to conversations and he knew that this situation could be no different, especially because everyone else in the room was so apprehensive about even approaching the subject.

"You mean the trail" Zoe said in a small voice that made everyone stop. The mood had immediately changed in that moment which was exactly what Killian and Emma were afraid of.

"Hey, kid, it's gonna be okay" Emma said wrapping a protective arm around her.

"Zoe, we will try and move at your pace" Mary added

"We know this won't be easy but we promise, we're all going to be here for you lass"

"Today is only going to be practice, the more you talk about it, the easier it will get" David tried to say in an upbeat tone. He knew that he would hear about his abrupt approach later, if not from his wife, from his daughter.

"Well that's for the mood killer _dad_." Emma said dragging out his name, "How about we all get some hot chocolate?"

"I'll start boiling the water. Zoe do you wanna' help me by getting some mugs out and putting the powder in them?" Mary said

"Sure" Zoe said getting up and following her grandmother into the kitchen. She knew that Mary was trying to get her out of the room so her parents and David could talk (Or reprimand him would probably be more accurate)

XXXX

"Dad!"

"What? Emma I'm sorry but as much as I would rather just relax this whole weekend, we have to make sure she is ready!"

"But you didn't have to go in guns blazing!"

"How would you have rather I have done it?" David came back getting a bit frustrated with Emma

"Mate I think what Emma means to say is that, we wish you would have given us some forewarning you were about to bring it up so that way we could maybe ease more into it" Killian stepped in. He knew that David and Emma both had a fierce passion to protect those they loved and that it sometimes caused a communication gap when they were both on high alert.

David took a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair. "Alright, I'm sorry I wasn't very tactful about it. I just don't want to leave her unprepared" David said giving Emma and Killian and appoligetic look

"I know Dad" Emma said leaning cross the table and putting her hand on top of his "I just don't want to damage everything that we have been working for. She trusts us and we can't break that trust"

"I promise you I will do everything I can to make sure that doesn't happen" David said seriously

"Alright everyone! Here are the hot cocoa's!" Mary said coming over with Zoe. She wanted them to know that Zoe was back within ear shot

"Thanks guys" Emma said taking a cup from her mom

"Thank you Zoe" David said taking one from her "And I'm sorry"

"It's okay" Zoe said with a shrug. She had never had an adult apologize to her and actually mean it

"No, it's not" He paused for a moment knowing he had to be delicate "I shouldn't have been so blunt about bringing up such a difficult topic. I really should have been more thoughtful"

"Like I said, it's okay, thanks though"

"You're welcome"

"Good job with the cocoa Zoe!" Emma said. She hated the awkward tension that had formed and needed to bring in a light hearted moment before Zoe completely shut down.

"Thanks, Mary helped" Zoe said without looking up from her mug. Emma just pulled Zoe close to her. She felt helpless as to how to help her daughter. "Can I go to my room?" Zoe asked

"Of course honey" Emma said releasing her daughter. Zoe immediately got up and left the table.

XXXX

The adults started to clean up the kitchen while they gave Zoe some space. They knew she needed a chance to process what was about to happen before they jumped into it. Killian's fears that he had shared with David were starting to rise to the surface. He really didn't want to loose the ground that they had gained with Zoe.

They all moved about the small kitchen in relative silence. Once everything was cleaned and put away they all made their way to the living room.

"Okay…so this is how this will work. We need Zoe to be able to tell her story. The more details she can remember the better"

"So we need her to relive it" Emma said, not to anyone in particular, more of just thinking out loud

"In a way, yes" David knew what he was asking was hard, but it was the only way to put the perp away. "Emma, you knew this was part of the deal"

"Aye mate, we did, but that was before we knew Zoe" Killian said placing a gentle hand on Emma back

"Killian, I know that this is hard, I don't blame you one bit for not wanting to put your daughter in this situation. Truth be told, if it was you Emma, I would do everything that I could to keep you from having to do this, but the good thing for Zoe is she never has to look at this man in the face" Mary said. She knew that they had to empathize with Emma if they were going to get anywhere. "She will be right here in the safety of your home and where no one will be able to hurt her."

"Thanks mom" Emma said through tears that were falling down her face. This was all so emotional for her in a way that she didn't understand until that moment.

"Killian, Emma, why don't you both go talk to Zoe and prep her and then you can bring her out here and we can start" David prompted them. They both nodded and headed toward their daughters room.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

 **Hello Oncers! I hope you all had a great week and you enjoyed the episode yesterday! I am beyond excited for the musical episode!**

 **Here is another chapter. Just be warned there is some talk of abuse of a child so if that bothers you you may want to skip part of this chapter.**

 **As always, please let me know what you think and what you want to see. Your reviews keep me writing!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Mary and David made their way to the living room to try and give Emma and Killian some space to talk to Zoe.

"David, we need to handle this delicately which, so far, you haven't"

"I know. I feel bad that I upset her it's just…I need them to grasp the gravity of this situation." He said turning toward her on the couch

"I know" She said, placing a gentle hand on his leg "But there are ways to do that, while also be sensitive to their feelings. They are all just scared"

"Frankly…so am I"

"What?" She was a bit confused. He hadn't voiced any concerns about this situation since they had returned to Florida.

"Seeing how this is all effecting her and how her natural instinct is to run, I'm worried that she is going to try and run and end up running into trouble"

"Honey, you know that Emma and Killian are going to keep her safe. I know that the thought of something happening to this girl is not a thought I want to entertain so let's not let ourselves go there" She said placing a gentle hand on his cheek. She went in to give him a kiss when she heard

"Mom, Dad, we have a problem"

XXXX

Emma and Killian went to walk into Zoe's room when Emma put a hand on Killian's chest "How do we handle this?"

"Like we have every other issue, we'll be honest with her and try to explain things the best we can. Swan, she knows that she can lean on us"

"Does she? Because she tried to sneak out this morning which I can only attribute to my parents coming to town"

"Aye, but you and I have both seen that, the more we repeatedly tell her we love her and are there for her, the more and more it sinks in"

Emma leaned in and kissed him "I love you"

"I love you too. Now, this isn't going to be easy, but I know we can do this" He said placing a gentle hand on her cheek. She smiled at him and took a deep breath before reaching over and gripping the door knob. They turned into the room, expecting to see Zoe sprawled out on the bed only to find an open window and no Zoe.

"Mom, Dad, We have a problem" Both Mary and David made a B-line for the bedroom where Killian and Emma were standing and saw the same sight

"How did she do that?" David asked confused "Didn't you guys put alarms on the windows too?"

"Aye mate…DANG IT!" Killian let out throwing his hands in the air before running one through his hair "I'm an idiot. She disarmed the alarm system this morning but I never rearmed it so she had a perfect get a way"

"Hey, It's okay" Emma said immediately framing his face with her hands and looking into his eyes "We're going to find her. Let's throw on some clothes and get moving, she couldn't have gotten that far" Killian nodded along with David and Mary and they all immediately went into action to get out and find Zoe.

XXXX

Zoe made her way down the sidewalk trying to pull her hoodie up around her face to conceal her identity. She knew that everyone was going to be upset when they realized she had snuck out of the window but she had to get out of there. Ever since David and Mary had shown up the night before she had been having flashbacks of the night when all of this started.

She could see the panicked look on the woman's face as the man shouted at her, just inches away from her face. The look of hate on the man's face was something that Zoe had never seen before, and hoped to never see again. She replayed the moment over and over. Why didn't she run? Why didn't she go after the man? Instead she just yelled at him. What good was that going to do? She could have gotten herself killed!

The man's face was always in her mind's eye and she was constantly scanning face to see if they matched, praying each time that they wouldn't. She still didn't know what she would do if she ever saw him again. Standing in the station looking at him through the glass made her stomach feel like it was jumping up into her throat even though, in that moment she knew he couldn't see her, she was still terrified of him.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she ran into a young man standing in front of her.

"Oh, I'm sorry"

"Elizabeth?" Zoe's head immediately shot up and searched the face in front of her and immediately started to move away when he gripped onto her upper arm.

"Please don't leave. I'm not going to hurt you"

"I'm sorry, I'm not the person you're looking for" Zoe said trying to walk away again, but the young man wouldn't let her go.

"Elizabeth, please. I just want to talk to you"

"I'm not Elizabeth!" Zoe yelled before wrenching her arm away from the boy and taking off down the road with him yelling out after her. Zoe ran and ran until she ended up on the waterfront where she fell down to her knee's and the tears began to fall.

The young man who had stopped her was at one time her foster brother from her past. His father had been an alcoholic and would get violent from time to time. He always took it out on his son so when Emma came to live with them he went into self-preservation mode and would always try and hide himself so that Emma would be the one who received the beating instead of him. Emma hated him for that as he would watch from afar as his father took out his anger on her. Honestly, she wasn't ready to face him again, especially if she didn't know what he wanted.

She stayed on the beach for what felt like eternity allowing the tears and emotions to flow when she heard a voice calling her name

"ZOE?" She immediately looked up and saw her parents and her grandparents all making their way quickly toward her. She tried to wipe off her face as much as she could but she knew that her face would give away her endless tears

"ZOE! Oh my gosh what happened? What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Emma said taking her face into her hands and looking Zoe over to see if she could find any visible injuries

"Mom, I'm fine"

"Like Heck you are. What is going on?" Emma pleaded with her. She knew that, even if Zoe was okay physically that she was most certainly okay emotionally.

"Lass, what is going on? Why are you crying?" Killian said coming and sitting next to her

"I said I'm fine" Zoe protested not liking all the attention they were drawing to her.

"No, you're not" Came the voice of her grandfather who came and sat on her other side with her grandmother. "Zoe, you may not be physically hurt but there is obviously something wrong. We're you're family kid. We want to be there for you" he said putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"I'ts really not a big deal guys. I'm sorry I ran away, let's go home" She said trying to get up but was immediately stopped by the four adults

"You know Zoe, you remind me a lot of Emma when she was younger" Mary said trying to come at things with a different approach

"Yea?" Zoe said a bit sarcastic. She was not liking being out numbered"

"She used to always find her way to the beach when she was upset or when she needed to think. She always said that the water helped to calm her down"

"Aye, that's what drew her to me. I used to race sail boats. It's actually how we met" Killian said with a wink

"It's true. I loved how the rhythm of the waves helped me to even out my breathing and help me to calm down and focus" Emma said with a small smile to her mom for helping them change topic.

"What would happen when she came out here?" Zoe asked, a bit curious if her mom had ever gotten in trouble

"Oh she got grounded a few times" David said giving Emma a side look with a slight smirk

"Only a couple of times" Emma defended herself

"But other than that, she would be able to work through some things and have time to think before she talked to me and David. It helped us a lot when we realized that Emma was someone who needed space before she could talk about things. When we realized that, we were able to communicate better"

"And I stopped getting grounded" Emma said with a chuckle.

"Zoe let a small smile come to her face watching Emma's banter with her parents.

"Love, what we are trying to say, is that, we want to be able to give you whatever space you need. We just need to communicate before you climb out of a window" He said giving her his dad look

"You really scared us kid. It's not cool walking in your room and finding it empty" Emma added

"Your parents just want to keep you safe sweetheart" Mary said leaning in and putting a hand on Zoe's leg.

"And I'm just starting to get used to this whole being a grandpa thing" David added ruffling her hair a bit.

"I just needed to clear my head" Zoe said looking into her lap

"What is going on in that pretty little head of yours" Killian asked wrapping his arm around Zoe and pulling her close.

"It's nothing, it's all just a lot" Zoe said. She didn't want to tell them that the same young man that had approached them in the mall parking lot had found her again. She wasn't supposed to be out here for that very reason and she knew that they would be freaked out.

"That's why you have them" David said pointing at Emma and Killian. "If I can tell you one thing Zoe, it's that Emma and Killian genuinely love you and want the best for you…They love you"

"He's right" Emma chimed in. They hadn't necessarily come out and said it but her dad was right, they did love Emma.

Everyone sat in a comfortable silence for a little bit listening to the waves hit the beach when the chill outside finally became apparent.

"Alright. How about we all head back to the house and make some hot chocolate?" Mary said getting up and brushing off the sand from her jeans.

"Sounds good to me" Killian said following suite before reaching down and lending a hand to his wife and daughter to help them get up. They then all turned and headed back to the house.

They all knew that this wasn't over and they were going to have to address the situation again at home, but they were all enjoying the moment of solitude and feeling like a real family.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

 **Happy ONCE Day! I am so excited and nervous and sad about the season finale but I'm willing to give Eddy and Adam a chance. I have loved this show since episode 1 and I will be there till it comes to an official end. I will miss Charming, Snow and Emma who were my favorite characters but at least they can live on though FF!**

 **Sorry it has been so long since I had an update. Long story short but I have been battling illness for the last 6.5 months and was at Mayo Clinic in Rochester MN getting more testing done. It all makes me feel super dragged out and tired. It makes it hard to write FF but hopefully they will have answers and will have more energy!**

 **Please as always, let me know what you think and what you want to see as the story progresses.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

As the little family made their way home, Killian and Charming were on high alert watching for any signs of anyone watching them. They had never planned to leave the house because they were worried that one of Stult's men would recognize David and Mary and put two and two together and come after Zoe, Emma and Killian. Thankfully they didn't see anything or anyone that brought on suspicion but both men were feeling a huge sense of relief as they all entered the house unscathed.

Killian immediately went and armed the security system. He wasn't going to repeat the same mistake again. Emma than guided Zoe into the living room and she and Mary took a seat on either side of her while Killian and David sat across from them.

"Alright kid, we have to talk" Emma said braking the awkward silence

"Mom, do we have to?"

"We'll be talking about your little stunt later. Right now…we need to talk about, the trail" Emma was so hesitant to let the words pass her lips, but she knew that it had to be done.

"Oh"

"I know this won't be easy Zoe but, we promise that all of us are here for you" Mary spoke up placing a gentle hand on her arm.

"Zoe, the trail is important because it's the only way we can guarantee your safety, permanently" David jumped in to further explain. "Once we know Stult's is in jail, you and Killian and Emma can start to have a real life, without so much fear of what might happen"

"I understand. What do you need me to do?" Zoe said in a low voice. She wasn't thrilled about this, but she also knew that she had a job to do, and that came first.

"We need you to tell us exactly what happened. Just like the night it happened when we took your statement at the police station in Storybrooke" Mary explained.

"Okay, I can do that"

"Would you mind walking us through it here? Just once so we can make sure that you didn't forget any details" David jumped in

"Um…sure…I, I was walking to my car…"

"Where were you walking from?" David jumped in. He needed her to remember every little detail. The more detail she could give the better

"Dad!"

"Sorry. Zoe, it's just…the more detail we have, the less questions they will need to ask you. Does that make sense?" David asked sounding a bit desperate.

"No, it's fine. I was walking to my car from the diner. I had stopped in there to grab a to-go order. When I was walking to my car I heard a sound from behind the building."

"What was the sound sweetheart" Mary asked gently while stroking her hair

"It was someone crying, they sounded like they were in pain. I went around the back of the building and I saw one of the waitresses from the restaurant being held up against the wall by a man."

"How was he holding her up against the wall?" David asked

"He had his hand around her throat"

"and how did you know she was one of the waitresses?" Mary added

"She had on her uniform"

"You're doing great love" Killian encouraged her. He could tell that reliving all of this for the first time was taking a toll on her.

"I just stood there for a minute before I yelled at the guy"

"What did you say?" Emma asked. She had read the briefing from her parents but hadn't actually heard Zoe talk about it.

"I just yelled 'HEY!'. That's when he turned and looked at me. I would know that face anywhere now, it's burned in my brain" Zoe said shaking her head as if trying to clear it from the image that she spoke of.

"So if they showed you the courtroom, you could point him out?" David asked gently

"Yea, I could"

"You're doing great! What happened after you yelled at him?" Killian asked leaning toward her and placing a gentle hand on her knee

"The man staired at me for a minute before he ran off. The girl dropped to the ground and I called 911. I never saw him again until the line up at the police station"

"Good job kid" Emma said putting an arm around her daughter and pulling her to herself. She then kissed her head as she ran her hand up and down her arm. "You did so good! You are a trooper!" Zoe simply nodded into Emma's chest as she held back the tears.

"You're mom's right Zoe. You did a great job remembering all the details about that night. I know this wasn't easy but you only have to do this one more time. After that, you won't have to ever talk about this night again" David said smiling at his granddaughter. He knew that if she could say it like that during the trail, there would be no reason that they wouldn't be putting Stult's away for good.

"Can I go to my room?" Zoe asked

"Of course love, we'll let you know when food is ready" Killian said with a sad smile as Zoe exited the room. He hated seeing her like this. They had come so far in the few short weeks she had been with them, but this felt like a huge step backwards.

Once Zoe was out of ear shot, the four adults sat in silence for a few moments. No one knew what to say. They were asking a young girl to relive one of the scariest moments of her life in order to save the rest of her life. It all seemed so contradictory.

"She really is going to be fine" David spoke up, breaking the silence.

"Will she?" Emma immediately snapped back

"Em…"

"I know you want us all to just keep talking about how everything is going to be okay but what we are asking of her, it's almost cruelty!"

"Emma, you knew that this was part of the reason that she was coming here. Without here we have no way to put this guy away. Would you rather the man who she witnessed almost kill someone be let loose?" David countered. He knew that Emma was speaking out of her emotions and he needed to bring her back to the reality of the situation

"David, we know that this is necessary, but you can't blame us for being protective" Killian cut in. He knew David was all about facts, but the facts weren't what mattered in this moment.

"Killian, no one is saying you shouldn't be protective. We wouldn't have placed Zoe with you if we thought that you would be anyone but" Mary said in her motherly voice "But part of being a parent, is walking through scary situations with our kids that we know are a necessary evil. Our job is to let them know that we have their back through it all"

Everyone was silent for another moment. Mary was right. They didn't want Zoe to have to do this, but it was a necessary evil and would ultimately end up being the one thing that would keep Zoe safe for the long hull.

"Okay, we can do this" Emma said looking up at Killian

"Aye love. Together" He said reaching out and taking her hand

"You two are really great parents. You're father and I could not be prouder" Mary said with a teary eyed looked.

"Agreed. You are all going to make it through this" David added. "Now how about we get started on the food?" Everyone laughed but nodded in agreement and started moving about to get things done.

XXXX

Zoe sat on her bed and let the tears roll down her cheeks in silence. Talking about that day was making her feel sick to her stomach. All the images were flooding back into her mind. The look on the man's face when he realized she had seen what he was doing. The way the girls body fell limp to the ground when he ran. The feelings she had looking at the line up, it was all opened up like a fresh wound.

The thought of having to sit with a camera in her face and tell the story again with people questioning her made her want to vomit. She honestly didn't know how she was going to be able to do it when the time came. It was all so overwhelming.

These were the moments that she wished she could go back to that beach and let the sound of the waves bring her calm. However, she knew she had already pushed her limits for one day and wouldn't get away with doing it again. She also knew that she wasn't going to be able to tell her parents what had happened on her way to the beach with running into her old foster brother, again.

On top of the trial and having to relive that awful day, she also had run into an awful memory from her past. She just wanted it all to go away. She laid back on her bed and let the heaviness of her eyelids take over before falling into a deep but unrestful sleep.

XXXX

Mary, David, Emma and Killian were all in the kitchen making lunch for everyone when Emma heard a cry coming from Zoe's room. She immediately dropped the spoon she was using to stir the noodles and made a b-line to Zoe's room. She found her daughter thrashing back and forth in her bed.

"Zoe" She said coming over and shaking her shoulders gently. Zoe didn't respond and continued to thrash around. "Zoe, honey, you need to wake up!" Emma said a bit more passionately. She also shook her shoulders a bit harder. This finally caused Zoe to throw her eyes open. She looked panicked as her eyes darted around the room before landing on Emma. She flew up and threw her arms around Emma and squeezed her as hard as she could. Emma immediately placed a hand on the back of Zoe's head and pulled her close while rubbing small circles into Zoe's back.

Killian came in and saw it and gave Emma a questioning look. She simply gave him a look that said she wasn't sure but he came close and placed a gentle hand on Zoe's back.

"Hello Love, want to talk about it?" Killian asked gently

Zoe simply shook her head no over and over again. She was still so scared of whatever had happened in her dream that she hasn't even loosened her grip on Emma.

"That's okay honey. We're here whenever you're ready" Emma said continuing to try and comfort her daughter. She and Killian shared a lost look. They weren't sure what had happened but Zoe had never been this clingy and let them comfort her like this either.

They both sat there for what seemed like an eternity before Zoe finally loosened her grip and leaned back. Emma took her face into her hands and wiped away the few stray tears. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Not really"

"I think it would make you feel better" Emma said moving a piece of hair out of Zoe's face.

"It really was nothing. I'm okay"

"Love, you're not very convincing. It's okay that you are having issues with everything. No one blames you" Killian said. He wanted her to know that they were there for her, in the good _and_ the bad.

"It was just a dream. It wasn't real" Zoe said covering her face with her hair "It's not a big deal. Sorry you guys had to come in here"

"We want to be here for you during times like this. Zoe, we love you so much! Honey, please tell us what happened in your dream. Real or not, we can tell it really affected you" Emma pleaded.

"You promise you won't be mad?"

"We can't hold something against you that you have no control over love" Killian added moving a piece of hair out of her face.

"It has to do with something that happened on my way to the beach" Zoe than immediately had both their attentions.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

 **Sorry it's been so long since I have updated this story but I tried to make this chapter extra long to make up for it! If you read my once upon a one shot story then you know that I have had off and on medical issues that have been difficult to deal with and basically has wiped out all my energy but things are starting to take a positive turn and hopefully I'll be able to start writing more regularly!**

 **As a warning on this chapter there will be mentions of child abuse so please be aware. We'll be talking about what happened to Emma at the house of the foster brother that she ran into on her way to the beach...**

* * *

Killian and Emma shared a look of panic before turning back to their daughter. When they found her on the beach she wasn't harmed in any way physically and they hadn't noticed anyone hanging around that would have known of their presence. What could have happened? They figured that if one of Stult's men had gotten a hold of Emma they would have done more than threaten her.

"Zoe, what happened on your way to the beach?" Emma asked gently

"Do you remember the boy who approached us at the mall?" Zoe asked

"Yes" Emma said remembering the horrible fear that had consumed her that day in the parking garage.

"Well, I wasn't paying attention where I was going and I ran into someone and...well it was him" Zoe admitted. She knew that this was going to cause Killian and Emma to worry even more about her. They were trying to keep her identity a secret and they weren't going to like that this person was close to figuring out where she lived.

"Zoe..." Emma felt at a loss.

"What happened when you ran into him love?" Killian asked. He knew they had to get the whole story to understand what was causing the nightmare she had just had

"He grabbed my arm when he realized who I was. I tried to get away but he didn't let go. I finally screamed at him and told him I wasn't Elizabeth and used all my adrenalin to get away and that's when I ran to the beach" Zoe said as a few tears streamed down her face

"What happened next?" Emma asked, hoping that that was the end.

"He kept yelling after me but I just kept running. I didn't see what he did or where he went, I just ran until I couldn't hear him anymore"

"You did the right thing lass. I'm sorry that happened" Killian said gently stroking her hair. He wasn't sure how much physical contact she would be okay with in this moment.

"Is that what your nightmare was about? Him chasing you?" Emma asked

Zoe nodded her head yes and then no. It was a combination of things really.

"Who was chasing you in your dream if it wasn't him?" Emma gently prodded. She knew this was difficult from Zoe to tell them

"It was the man from that night, he was chasing me. But it wasn't just that. The boy who I ran into, when I was at his house, his dad...his dad used to beat me and he..HE JUST WATCHED!" She said as she finally let the tears fall and let her walls come crashing down. Emma finally took Zoe into her arms and cradled her head as Zoe sobbed. Emma and Killian shared a look of total loss. They had never had a chance to talk to Zoe about her past. They knew she had been through some difficult times but nothing like this.

Emma and Killian didn't leave Zoe's side and she ended up falling asleep on Emma's chest as she held her. They tucked her in and shut the light off before closing the door. Zoe was completely exhausted from all of the emotional strain of the day as were Killian and Emma. They went out into the living room where Emma was immediately embraced by her mother while David led Killian to the couch. They had heard the sobs but didn't want to overstep. They knew that this needed to be a moment between them and Zoe.

Mary and Emma joined David and Killian on the couch. Emma laid her head on her mothers shoulder finding comfort from her own mother. "What are we gonna do?" Emma said threw her own tears that were now staining her face

"You're going to be there for Zoe when she needs you most, both of you" Mary said stroking her daughters hair and giving her son-in-law a small smile while her husband squeezed his shoulder for emphasis. "And we're going to be with you both the whole way threw this" David added looking between the two. He felt so bad that he didn't have the words to give them to take away the pain they were feeling but he also knew that they would grow from this and become a stronger family.

They all sat in silence letting everything sink in as they tried to process everything that Zoe had told them. Killian had half a mind to go out and find this boy and tear into him. How could he just watch as Emma was beaten by a grown adult. Then again, he was just a little boy himself at the time and wouldn't have been able to intervene. It was a catch twenty two situation where one child was going to get hurt either way. He just hated that Zoe was the one who got hurt, not just physically but emotionally. She had to have felt betrayed by him not even trying to intervene and save her.

Emma laid against her mother feeling her gentle touch and thinking about how Zoe lacked that during those times. She wondered if anyone took care of her when that horrible man was done beating the crap out of her like she was a punching bag or if she was left to take care of her own wounds that he so haphazardly inflicted. Her blood boiled as she thought about her poor little girl being even smaller then she is now getting hurt by a grown man. It was all so wrong.

Mary Margret eventually moved Emma to lean on Killian while she got up and made everyone some coffee as she knew none of them would be sleeping tonight. Emma and Killian would want to be there if Zoe were to wake up and need them and David and Mary in turn would need to take care of them. They were glad that they had decided to come and prep Zoe in person so that they could be there for Killian and Emma during this time. They were a family first and foremost.

XXXX

Zoe slept peacefully through the night. Emma had fallen asleep next to her while Killian feel asleep on the floor. Mary and David had taken up residence on the couch in case they needed to get them anything. Their sleep was very light and therefore not restful. The minute that Zoe woke up and shifted in the bed both Emma and Killian were awake.

"Mom? Dad? What are you doing in here? Why do I feel so stuffed up?" She said followed by a sneeze. Killian reached up to the night stand and handed her a Kleenex.

"Do you remember what happened last night?" Emma asked cautiously while gently rubbing Zoe's back.

"I remember we were talking about Andy showing up on my way to the beach and then...I guess I fell asleep crying?" She asked a bit imbarassed

"Hey" Emma said placing a gentle hand on her face and moving away a stray piece of her hair "You have nothing to be embarrassed about, you have had a lot to deal with lately and it was bound to come out eventually" Emma said comforting her

"Aye lass, our job is to be here for you, you're not alone anymore" Killian said taking her hand. They then heard a knock on the door followed by the entrance of Mary and David caring in a tray full of coffee mugs and and a full pot of coffee.

"Being as no one got a lot of sleep, we figured we would all be needing a little bit of this" Mary said as She sat the tray on Zoe's dresser.

"I agree, coffee is always necessary but especially after yesterday" Emma said moving toward her mother

"One thing you should know Zoe is that Emma has an unhealthy obsession with coffee" David said shaking his head at his daughter who had her hands wrapped around the mug and was smelling it like it held the very answers to life it's self

"it is not unhealthy!" Emma argued "I am well aware of my addition and embrace it whole heartedly!"

"That would explain why we have two full cupboards dedicated to coffee mugs" Killian chimed in taking the cup being offered to him by Mary

"I'm with Emma, I can't live without coffee" Zoe said having the same glazed over look that Emma had when she took her cup from David.

"What am I going to do with you two?" Killian asked shaking his head

"After everything that had happened the night before, this felt good, to be together as a family and just have playful banter with no heaviness. They allowed the moment to continue and David and Mary shared a few stories of Emma's teenage years which made Zoe laugh. Killian added in a few stories of his adolescence as well to balance things out and make sure his wife didn't feel singled out. Eventually they all moved from Zoe's room to the kitchen where Mary and David made a breakfast of pancakes and eggs for everyone.

"This family really likes pancakes doesn't it?" Zoe asked as she took a bite of her chocolate chip pancakes.

"What do you mean?" Emma asked swallowing her last bite

"We've had pancakes at least once a week since I've lived here" Zoe said "It's just not normal"

"Well who said we were normal lass" Killian said ruffling her hair

"It just so happens that Pancakes are Emma's favorite breakfast food" Mary added as she brought over a pitcher of orange juice for the group

"One time, after Killian and I had moved in together, my dad came over and made so many pancakes we were eating them every morning for two weeks" Emma chimed in sending her dad a sly smile

"Can't a father provide for his daughter?" David said in defense"

"Yea, but if it hadn't been for Killian I would have been eating pancakes for at least a month!"

"What _really_ happened his charming was feeling sad because Emma had moved out and he was afraid he wasn't going to see her as much anymore" Mary said giving her husband and daughter a look. She always thought it was funny how they would both try and defend their actions that really had underlying meanings.

"I just like spending time with my daughter is all" Charming said effectively ending the conversation. They shared more small tack around the table as the stack of pancakes was slowly devoured one at a time. Once that was done Killian and David volunteered to clean up while the girls went and got ready for the day. Today was David and Mary's last day in Florida so they had to make sure that Zoe was ready for her testimony that was in just a few short days but they also didn't want to have a repeat of the night before.

"Killian,"

"I know...I know we have to talk about it"

"I'm sorry, I really am. I promise though that I'll let you and Emma lead into it, I won't let a repeat of last night happen, I know that was hard on you and Emma but more immortally it was hard on Zoe."

"Thanks you mate. I just don't know if she is going to be able to handle this" He said honestly looking at his father in law. The look on Zoe's face kept flashing in his mind thinking about having to have her talk about what happened. But then again, maybe because she got it out last night, she would feel better about it today.

"She can. She is a strong girl and she has a strong family that is standing with her, you all will get through this and we can finally put this all behind us" Charming said putting a strong hand on Killian's shoulder. Killian nodded before they went back to cleaning up the last bits of breakfast and following the girls example in getting ready for the day.

XXXX

Emma knocked on Zoe's door and gently opened it to peek her head in "Mind if I come in?"

"Yea, I'm just finishing up doing my hair"

"May I?" Emma asked reaching out for the brush. Zoe shrugged but gave her the brush

"My mom used to always brush my hair before I went to bed. it helped me relax and fall asleep better"

"I bet that was nice" Zoe said allowing Emma to continue to brush her hair

"It was. Its as also the times when I would get to process all that had happened that day with my mom. I would talk while she brushed my hair till it was silky soft"

"I guess you're wanting me to talk?" Zoe said giving Emma a half smile in the mirror

"If you want. I never want you to share more than you're comfortable with. Killian and I will only be apart of your life in the ways that you want us to be"

"I know. I really do want to let you guys in it's just...there is a lot that I have tried to forget" Zoe said a bit sad

"And that's okay, you don't have to tell us anything that you are uncomfortable with. But know this, whatever you choose to tell us, it won't change how much we love you" Emma said stopping the brushing and turning Zoe to look at her. She really wanted to make sure that Zoe understood that.

"I know mom, I love you guys too" Zoe said. Emma immediately wrapped her arms around Zoe and held her close. This was the first time that Zoe had ever said I love you to her and it made her want to melt. She already loved her so much but to hear that she loved her back, it validated all the pain and all the hurt the they had walked through with her. She knew they would make it now. Zoe reciprocated the hug for the first time and leaned into the embrace. She really did love Emma and Killian and she finally felt safe for the first time. They held each other for a few minutes before breaking the hold and Emma returned to bursting Zoe's hair.

"We have to talk about the trial today right?" Zoe said in a small voice

"Yes, but your dad and I will be there the whole time. We know this is hard but we also know that you're a fighter and we will fight with you to the very end" Emma said as she completed the braid she had put in Zoe's hair

"I know mom. I can do this" Zoe said determined. She knew that this was going to be the hardest thing she had ever done, tell her story and then have people ask her questions about it but being able to see her parents on the other side of the camera and not have to face that man in person was making it doable. Emma gave Zoe's shoulders a squeeze before they exited her room to meet up with everyone else. Zoe took a deep breath and looked at her father and grandparents before announcing "Let's do this"


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

 **Hello Everyone, I'm so sorry that it has taken me WAY too long to post an update. Things in my life have been crazy not only with my own health but also with my family. I hope that you all have been having better luck in the personal health department then we have :/**

 **This story is now going to come to a soft end. I really like how things wrapped up so I would love to know what you would want to see. If I didn't show a particular scenes that you were hoping for I will do one off chapters for you that can be anywhere in the timeline of the story so feel free to start shooting those my way!**

 **Without further ado, here is the final chapter. ENJOY!**

* * *

Mary and David worked with Zoe as Emma and Killian watched on. David was being much gentler with her after what had transpired the last time they had gone through her story. Zoe handled everything like a champ and was holding her own as David and Mary asked her question after question.

Emma and Killian sat back in awe. They had known that Zoe was strong but they hadn't realized just how strong. She wasn't showing even a shred of hesitation or fear. Granted, she now had a level of trust with the four adults, but this was still a lot of hard and detailed information that they were asking her to relive. They couldn't have been more proud.

After about an hour and a half Mary and David both agreed that Zoe was well prepared and could handle whatever Stult's lawyer would throw at her and decided that they had all earned some time out of the house to get some ice cream. They all headed to the garage and piled in Emma and Killian's SUV before they pulled out and headed toward main street.

"Zoe, I'm so proud of you. I mean, I knew you were strong and that you could hold your own but I seriously was blown away by how confident you are. You are going to do fantastic when the time comes" Emma gushed as she put her arm around Zoe's shoulder.

"Thanks mom, I feel ready to get this all behind me. If this is what I have to do to make that happen, then so be it. But I honestly couldn't do it without the both of you" She said looking between Emma and Killian.

"What are we?" David jumped in jokingly

"And of course you two" She said with a chuckle. She appreciated her grandfather's attempt to lighten the mood after a very tense afternoon and evening.

"Zoe, I always felt a strong connection to you after we met you that night but now I know why, you were meant to be apart of this family" Mary said laying a hand on her knee.

"Thanks Grandma, I feel the same way"

They shared some other small talk and banter as they all enjoyed the much deserved ice cream break. They finally felt like a normal family, grandparents, parents, and child, all together just enjoying each other's company.

XXXX

Mary and David left that next day with a few tears shed by all three. They had really enjoyed the family bonding that they had gotten to do during their time in Florida. As they all shared hugs Emma and Killian promised to bring Zoe to visit Storybrooke soon so that they could spend more time with her. Of course they would have to wait till after the trail to make sure that it was safe for Zoe to be in Storybrooke.

A few weeks later it was time for the trail. The Storybrooke police had worked with Killian's station to get all the required camera equipment set up at the station with a place for Zoe to sit against a neutral background to make sure that they didn't give any inkling to where she really was.

Zoe walked in, escorted by Emma who had a protective hand on her shoulder. They had told everyone at the station that they had recently adopted a daughter named Zoe but hadn't brought her around to meet everyone just yet. To make things even stranger, today Zoe was going to have to go by Elizabeth because that was the name she was known by when she agreed to testify. They also didn't want anyone to know what her new name was in the chance that they came looking for her.

Emma guided her over to the chair that was set up with a few extra lights pointing at it along with the cameras. It was all a bit overwhelming and Emma could feel Zoe's heart beating out of her chest.

"Hey," Emma said taking Zoe by the shoulders and turning her to look at her. "You okay?"

"Yea, of course" Zoe said plastering a brave face on

"It's okay if you're not. I know that this is not easy. You did a lot of prep with David and Mary but that doesn't substitute for the real thing" Emma said moving a piece of hair out of her face

"I know…I'm…" Zoe took a moment to take a deep breath and keep herself from crying. "I know that I can do this. I just…I'm ready to put it all behind me"

"I know" Emma said taking her face into her hands and wiping away a stray tear that had escaped "But you know that your dad and I will love you no matter what and you are safe. Stult's doesn't have a clue where you are and after today, you will never have to face him again"

"Thanks mom" Zoe got out still trying to hold back tears. She squeezed Emma's hand before the deputy came over to direct her over to the chair where she would conduct the interview. She looked around and saw the camera that was facing her that was surrounding by large white lights. She then looked to the right of the camera and saw a TV that was showing the courtroom where the trail was taking place.

She watched as people began to filter in. She could see what looked like a news crew through the backdoor that was being told they couldn't come in. It honestly all felt so surreal. She had seen plenty of crime procedurals on TV over the years and had always wondered what it would be like to be in one. Now she was getting a first-hand look at what it is like in real life.

She heard someone clear their throat and she looked up to see her parents smiling at her from behind the screen.

"We'll be right here the whole time love" Killian said trying to stay upbeat.

"Thanks Dad" Emma said with a sad smile. She just wished that she could get up and be with them behind the screen and feel safe. With the light on her and the camera in her face, she felt exposed. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She remembered all the tips and scenarios that David and Mary had gone over with her. She could do this. She was going to put this man away and she was finally going to get to have the family she deserved. She opened her eyes and looked up at her parents, "I'm ready"

XXXX

Zoe did exactly as David and Mary had trained her to do. It also helped that, not only were her parents on the other side of the screen, but she could see her grandparents over the shoulder of the lawyers sitting in the courtroom in Storybrooke. She didn't miss a single detail. Eventually they panned the camera out to see the defendant and they asked her if she saw the man she had seen that night sitting in the room. She immediately pointed out Stult's as she sat behind the table at the front. A chill ran down her spine as she looked at his face. He had the same expression that he had had that night when she had yelled at him. It took everything in her not to burst into tears.

After the lawyers were done interviewing her the lights went out and the deputy behind the camera gave her the okay to get up. She immediately ran to Killian and Emma who wrapped their arms around her as she finally let the emotions of everything flow over her. The tears came in waves but it felt cleansing for the little family to be able to finally release the tension that had been building to this moment. They were finally able to put this behind them.

They eventually decided to go get some food once they were able to pull themselves together. Zoe wasn't interested in watching the rest of the trial and Mary and David would call them once the verdict came in. They drove to their favorite dinner and got three grilled cheese sandwiches and an order of onion rings to share. No one really said much. They were all emotionally exhausted at this point. Emma put her arm around Zoe who leaned into the embrace and put her head on her shoulder.

After they finished their meal they decided to head home. Once they arrived they put on a movie but it wasn't long before they were all asleep on the couch. Emma was laying up against Killian with her head on his shoulder while Zoe was laid out with her head on Emma's lap.

Killians phone began to ring which quickly woke him up and he grabbed it before it awkoke the rest of his family.

"This is Killian"

 _"Killian, it's David. I'm sorry, did I wake you guys?"_

"Just me mate but it's quite all right. I'm assuming they have a verdict?"

 _"Zoe did it, Stults is going away for a very long time"_

Killian felt a wave of relief fall over him. "Thank goodness. I'm glad to hear it. We can finally put this behind us"

 _"I know, I'm glad that it's over. Now Killian, I don't need to tell you that Stult's men are going to try and come after her now that she put their leader in jail"_

"Aye mate, I understand. We won't be taking any chances here."

 _"Glad to hear it. Is Emma up?"_

"Sorry mate, she's sound asleep on me with Zoe passed out on her lap"

 _"Well then I will let you enjoy some time with your girls. We will be in touch as soon as we get word of the sentencing"_

"Thanks Mate. Talk to you then" and with that Killian hung up. HE reached up and put his hand on Emma's head before laying a small kiss on top of it. He then stroked Zoe's cheek. He was never happier than seeing both of his girls safe and sound in their home and knowing that the man who caused his daughter so much terror was finally behind bars.

They may not have become a family the conventional way but they were a family none the less. He wouldn't trade Zoe for the world. From now on out, they were going to enjoying being a normal family and being together each and everyday, because tomorrow is never promised.

XXXX

David called back a few days later when everyone was together to share that Stult's had been sentenced to life in prison for attempted murder along with a few other charges that they were able to pin on him. This meant that Stult's was never going to be able to come near Zoe ever again which gave everyone a huge sense of relief and calm.

They agreed that, with everything being relatively new, they would wait about a year for things to die down before Emma and Killian brought Zoe to visit Storybooke. They didn't want to take the chance of one of Stult's men recognizing her from the trial and coming after her as they were bound to start looking for her sooner or later. However, Mary and David agreed that they would come back to Florida in a few months for a visit that was strictly family and fun, nothing about work was allowed to be discussed.

Zoe continued her online classes and the little family was able to find a rhythm with one another that felt comfortable. Emma had started being very selective to what bail bond jobs she would take as she didn't want to leave Zoe and Killian on their own for long stints of time. She also wanted to be more of a stay at home mom, even if her daughter was already grown. She even began taking on some of the administrative duties at the station that had been left vacant after one of the desk workers had resigned a few months before.

Everything wasn't perfect, they were still human after all, but Zoe couldn't have asked for better. She finally had a family. She had Found Home.


End file.
